NCIS: Scars That Cannot Be Forgotten Tony'sSequel
by HavocLover
Summary: Gibbs and his team are being targeted by terroists! With danger lurking around every corner, the team must hurry and find out who is trying to kill them. However, no matter how careful they are, they may lose one of their own!
1. Chapter 1

NCIS: Scars That Cannot Be Removed

Leroy Jethro Gibbs, retired marine and NCIS agent, sighed heavily as he slipped on his brown jacket, looking at his senior agent who was resting quietly on the sofa.

Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo, just a regular kid with a regular life until he began working with NCIS, had his eyes half-open and he hadn't said a word all had been five weeks since Tony had begun staying with his boss, but he had yet to go to work yet. According to Director Jenny Shepard, Gibbs' lover in the past, Tony only had a week of sick leave left and a few weeks for vacaton time. Gibbs was beginning to feel as though Tony would never return to work, but decided to keep his hopes up.

"DiNozzo. Get up." Gibbs snapped, looking at Tony with an angry yet caring look. Tony didn't respond at first, didn't move, nor did he even react. However, after a few minutes, Tony shifted the blanket up his body some more and murmured quietly, "Tomorrow Boss..." Gibbs sighed in annoyance as he growled, "Ya said that yesterday and last week. Get the hell up. Now!" Tony looked like he was about to cry at first, closing his eyes and letting loose a deep breath. He then looked up at Gibbs and said softly, "I'll come in later." Gibbs was about to protest, but then simply sighed and murmured, "No later than noon, DiNozzo."

"Got it."

Gibbs made his way out of the house and into the car. He still couldn't believe how long it had been already and Tony still had yet to recover. It killed Gibbs on the inside and as he started his car, he realized that he had forgotten his cellphone inside. He sighed angrily, getting out of the car and leaving the door open as he rushed inside. A harsh wind blew by and Gibbs shielded his face from the bitter wind. Behind him, he heard his car door slam from the force of the wind and in the next instant, there was a loud explosion, knocking Gibbs onto his face.

He quickly covered his head when he fell and heard pieces of his car falling around him. When he opened his eyes, he turned to look back at what was left of his car, hearing the front door open. "Boss ar--Oh...You're okay." Tony's voice said in a rush.

Gibbs groaned slightly as he stood, his body already growing sore. He brushed dirt off his pants before looking at his car, then at Tony. "DiNozzo." Tony nodded, running back into the house to grab his cellphone. He returned in an instant, handing Gibbs his phone as he began calling everyone to tell them what had happened. Gibbs ran a hand through his hair and sighed in relief. He stared back at his car and wondered what would've happened had he had been in that car.

NCIS Opening...

Ziva David, a Mossad Agent who had been transferred to the NCIS Agency, sighed in annoyance as she drove down some streets. Then again, her driving could not be classified as driving, but instead as racing. She was going so fast that she almost hit a cat running across the road. As she swore and took a sharp turn, Ziva thought about the phone call she had gotten. Even though Tony and her were technically dating, Ziva hadn't spoken with the Senior Field Agent in a few weeks. She figured he needed time alone and didn't bother calling. After all, Tony had been through a lot this year.

As Ziva turned down Gibbs' road, she sighed, seeing McGee's car parked on the side of the road, a few cop cars, a firetruck, and Ducky's huge truck resembling an amublance. She parked her car behind McGee's and then quickly climbed out, slipping on her NCIS hat and grabbing her bag from the backseat. When she looked at the "crime scene" she saw Tony dressed in uniform and scraping something off the side of the. She smiled, but quickly hid it when she came closer to him. McGee was taking pictures as he looked up and smiled. "Morning, Ziva." He said cheerfully. Ziva nodded to him, setting her bag down and saying calmly, "McGee." She then turned to Tony and said, "I did not expect to see you at work today..."

Tony smiled as he began peering into the car. "I wasn't going to, until Gibbs almost blew up this morning." He yawned slightly, resisting the urge to rub his eyes, and then stood up, smacking his head off the door frame. He yelped slightly, placing a hand on his head and backing away so that McGee could begin searching for the detonator on the car door. Tony looked at Ziva and couldn't help but smile. He didn't say anything at first until she looked at McGee.

"Missed you."

Ziva looked at Tony and said calmly, "You could have called."

Tony nodded, remembering the last time Ziva had spoken those words. He had been transferred to the Seahawk and stuck there without any contact with the others. When he had finally come in contact with Ziva and Gibbs, Ziva had almost cried as she spoke the exact words she had just spoken.

Tony nodded and mumbled, "Could've." Just as he was about to say something else, Ducky interjected saying loudly, "Anthony, dear boy! I haven't seen you in an entire month!" Tony looked back at the older coroner, watching as he walked over to him. Ziva began moving inside Gibbs' house, trying to see if Gibbs knew anything of the explosion.

"Hey Ducky." Tony said softly, shaking hands with Ducky and smiling as Ducky begin speaking. "Well, this must be a pretty awful wake-up call. Isn't it, Anthony?" Tony nodded, saying gently, "Yeah. I wasn't planning on coming back until to--later today." Ducky laughed slightly before saying, "Yes, well, now you're back and you can help us find whoever tried to kill dear Jethro." Tony looked at the car before saying, "Well, there's no one dead, Ducky." He looked at Ducky and asked, "So...Why are you here?" Ducky flicked Tony's forehead and said with a smile. "I came to check on Jethro." He walked inside, leaving Tony to rub his forehead. He sighed heavily, walking back over to the car and asking, "Alright, Probie, what's the deal? Where's the bomb?" He took out his notebook, getting ready to jot some things down.

McGee looked at Tony, smiling at the name for once before saying, "Uh...Well, I found pieces of it underneath." He bent down to look under the car again and pointed to the gas tank. "See the wires hanging from there?" Tony bent down as well, looking at the gas tank. "Yep. So that's where it started?" He asked, lying on his stomach and writing everything down. McGee nodded and continued explaining,

"The bomb was hooked up to the door. So, when Gibbs opened the door and closed it, it would snap the wire, spark it, and then set the bomb off. But, the first time Gibbs shut the door, it hadn't been hard enough to snap the wires. If he had continued driving, he would've moved around the bomb and it would've gone off anyway. So, anyway, uh...The second time he got out, the wind was strong enough to slam the door and break the wire. Once it broke, the spark went through the wires and ran down to the bomb hooked up to his gas tank. Then--."

"Fireworks." Tony said, smiling slightly. McGee nodded and stood up, Tony following his lead after he finished writing his sentence. He sighed and looked at McGee. "We gonna be able to figure out who made it?" McGee held up a bag of evidence with pieces of the bomb inside and said with a smile. "Heading over to Abbs right now." Tony nodded and walked back inside, McGee walking to his car to place the evidence in it. He then made his way to Tony's side and asked, "You going to be alright, Tony?" Tony nodded as he looked at McGee. "Yeah, Probie. I'm fine. No worries." McGee nodded and sighed softly, stepping inside only to meet Gibbs. He quickly stepped out of his way as Gibbs walked out of his house a bit angrily.

Tony followed after him, asking, "Boss, something wrong?" Gibbs gave Tony a dirty look before saying, "DiNozzo, get your ass over to NCIS." He climbed into Ducky's truck, Ducky waving at the two points as they drove off. Tony blinked and looked at McGee, asking, "Mind if I ride with you?" McGee shook his head as he watched the truck vanish from his sight. "No...No, I don't mind." Ziva walked up from behind them and said calmly, "Let us get back. Abby needs her evidence." She walked to her car while the boys got into their car. The minute Tony got into the car, he realized that it was going to be a very, very long day.

NCIS BUILDING...

Abby Sciuto growled as she punched in a few keys, then a few more, and swore, glaring at the computer. "Why? Why?!" She shouted, typing a few more keys and concentrating on the screen.

"Morning, Abbs."

Came a voice, Abby disregarded it. She continued typing as she replied, "I can't get a signal on Tony's cellphone. I tried calling him, but he won't answer his phone. So then I tried tracking it, but it's off. I'm worried that he might be in trouble again or wants to stay far away from us. Maybe he's lost his way or something and plans on killing himself!"

"I think you're over-reacting. Try calling him again."

Abby rolled her eyes as she picked up her cellphone and growled, "I don't know where you're going with this Tony, but it'd better be good." She began calling and froze, hearing Tony's cellphone ringing and spinning around. She grinned and rushed over to him, hugging him tightly. "TONY!" She exclaimed, Tony laughing as she did so.

"Hey Abbs. I need you to process some evidence." Tony said, handing her a bag, or trying to. Abby pulled away and took it, asking, "Tony, why didn't you call?! I haven't heard from you or seen you in five weeks Tony! Do you know how many hours that is?!" Tony smiled, patting Abby's shoulder and saying gently, "Abbs, please calm down." Abby sighed and placed the bags of evidence on the metal table, turning to Tony. She smiled softly and hugged him tightly again. "I'm glad you're back Tony." Tony nodded as he hugged her back,mumbling, "Me too, Abbs." She felt her eyes watering as she hugged Tony, biting her lower lip. "I thought something bad happened to you..."

"I'd tell you before it happened." Tony joked softly, as the young goth pulled away. She smiled and said, "Alright, I'll uhm...Process anything you need." Tony nodded and handed her a few bags of evidence. "I know it's nothing much, but it's all we could gather from the crime scene. Whoever almost blew up Gibbs is sneaky." Abby sighed heavily and muttered, "Aren't they all?"

"Bryce wasn't." Tony suddenly said, Abby looking at him. She thought for a minute before mumbling, "No...He was pretty public about his ideas and things." She looked back at the screen as Tony walked over and said softly, "I'll come back down after I talk with Director Shepard. Maybe we can have lunch together or something." Abby nodded and hugged him once again, exclaiming, "That would be great!" He chuckled and pulled away, walking away and saying, "See you later then!"

WITH GIBBS IN THE BULLPEN...

Gibbs sighed as he sat at his desk. He had been wondering the same thing all day: Was Tony really ready for a case like this already? The agent had almost died, he had been tortured and ripped apart. As much as Gibbs as urged him to come into work, he feared that he wasn't ready. Perhaps there would be a time when Tony wouldn't be able to pull the trigger or end up hesitating. That slight hesitation to kill him, and that scared Gibbs.

However, he also had to be more than careful about pretty much everything now. He planned on staying in the NCIS building, along with Tony, and figuring this out until the bastard or bitch was put in jail. It was harder to trail down suspects for Gibbs than with Tony. Gibbs had thousands and remembered their names, Tony had millions and remembered only about twenty.

Gibbs growled slightly as he stood up. He was about to yell to his team about getting any progress, when his phone rang. He picked it up and sighed, answering, "Yeah, Gibbs."

"No matter where you go, we will find you and kill you. No matter who tries to protect you, they will be disposed off."

In the next few seconds, the call ended and Gibbs was left staring at the phone and revising the words. These people knew him and they knew where he lived, where he worked, and who he worked with. He could tell by the way they spoke, the words in their sentence. Gibbs looked at McGee and Ziva, who were staring at him, and said rather softly, "Stay here tonight. Don't leave the building." He then left in fast, long strides, heading to tell Ducky, Palmer, Jenny, Abby, and especially Tony the same thing.

He had to make sure that everyone was with him at all times and that no one left. If they did, they would end up like Tony, maybe worse. They would end up broken and with no hopes for tomorrow. They would lose their selves and become a different person. Gibbs would not let that happen. Not again.

Gibbs would keep everyone safe, even if he had to die in order for it to happen. 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Tony sighed as he sat at his desk, eating a few chips. Gibbs had gathered everyone into the room just a few minutes ago and told them all about the phone call, telling them that no one was allowed to leave the building. After his speech, long and boring, Tony had gotten some food to pass the time.

As he watched Ziva type something on her computer and McGee sit there listening to his iPod, he felt the container of pills in his right pocket. He sighed heavily and stood up, saying, "Bathroom break." He walked over to the elevator and yawned, pressing the button. He wanted to make sure to use the downstairs bathroom so that Gibbs wouldn't see him taking his pills, since he was supposed to be off them about a week ago.

Tony figured it wasn't that bad, but to Leroy Jethro Gibbs, it would be a huge major "No-No". So, he was left with escaping the man...For the time-being anyway. After all, Gibbs knew pretty much everything there was to know. The minute the elevator hit the floor he wanted to be on, the doors opened and Tony sighed, walking down a long hallway. All the lights were off since most of the people working here had evacuated, and it seemed a lot more spooky than it already was. He sighed angrily as he cursed himself for being such a baby. However, the closer he got to the bathroom, the more fear constricted him.

He swallowed, suddenly hearing the water on in the bathroom. Tony froze, not moving a single inch as his mind flashed back to the time Bryce had almost drowned him. The feeling of water rushing through his throat and into his lungs flashed into Tony's head and Tony looked around, trying to see if anyone was around. He heard his hear pounding in his ears as he turned around and saw the bathroom door close. He quickly took out his gun and began looking around frantically, getting ready to pull the trigger.

Tony was not about to get tortured once again. He simply couldn't. He hated that feeling of fear and loss and he hated knowing that someone might not show up to save him.

He began making his way back towards the elevator and heard a gun fire.

Tony quickly hit the ground and began looking around for the person who had fired it. He swallowed heavily, his breath picking up and fear clenching his gut with its mighty hand.

He bit his lower lip, rushing over to the elevator and hearing another gun shot. This time, when he turned around, he saw the man just enough to know where he was hiding now. Tony quickly began firing and pushed the button on the elevator several times with his other hand. When the doors dinged open, he rushed in and closed the doors, just in time for the man to open fire once again. He breathed heavily, ripping out his cellphone and dialing quickly. As the phone ran, Tony slipped out one of his pills and swallowed it, hoping to die down the anxiety.

When Gibbs finally answered, Tony began explaining. "Boss, they're in the building! They were uh...They have guns and stuff and--!"

"DiNozzo, what the hell are you talking about?! Is this some kind of sick joke?"

Tony blinked, his face twisting in confusion. "Wh-What?"

"DiNozzo, I was on the floor just above you making sure everyone had evacuated. The only damn gun I heard was one; yours!"

Tony stared at the elevator, hearing it ding before the doors opened. He hadn't seen anyone? Gibbs had been just above him and only heard his gun. He knew he saw someone, had someone shooting at him...So why was there only his gun being heard?!

He swallowed, hearing Gibbs ask, "You alright?" Tony didn't respond, pushing another button on the elevator and replying softly, "Yeah Boss...I'm good." He swallowed and suddenly, the elevator came to an abrupt halt. Tony fell over and dropped his phone, hearing Gibbs calling his name, asking him what happened. Tony grabbed the phone and said calmly, "I'm fine, Boss. Just uh...Somethin's wrong with the elevator." He sat in one of the corners, praying that this wasn't another fake imagination.

"Alright, I'm on my way." He hung up just as Tony hugged his knees against his chest. He took a deep breath and whispered, "Why did he only hear my gun? He was right there..." He stared at the closed elevator doors and licked his lips, wondering what was going on with him.

THE BULLPEN...

"He heard gunfires?" Ziva asked, giving Gibbs a strange look. Gibbs nodded, grabbing a flashlight from his drawer and walking over to the elevator doors that were being pried open. "Yeah. Tried to shoot 'em too." He watched as a few people stepped aside held the doors open. Gibbs flashed his light down and began moving it around, seeing the elevator just below him. He sighed heavily and heard Ziva ask, "Could it be...What Ducky was talking about, Gibbs?"

Gibbs looked at her. He was just wondering the same thing. Ducky had mentioned Tony going to see a therapist or maybe even visiting a mental instituition for a bit, but Gibbs had refused and simply left Tony the way he was. Now he was beginning to rethink his decision.

Suddenly, Gibbs' flashlight came upon a dead body hanging from one of the cables by another cable. He swore and watched as a few people began getting things prepared to get the dead body away from the cables.

He sighed heavily and looked down at his phone. Just as he did so, Tony began calling him. He smiled slightly and answered the phone, stepping away from the people at work and the elevator. "Don't worry DiNozzo. We're gettin ya o--!"

"I wouldn't worry about Special Agent DiNozzo."

Gibbs froze, hearing the familiar voice from earlier.

"Anthony has taken one too many pills today, which does not mix well with anxiety and delusions, I warn you. He may even need to...Leave the building."

At those last few words, Gibbs' breath hitched and he heard the man laughing, just as he hung up. He growled angrily and walked back over to men, snapping, "Get my agent out of there and get him out of there, NOW!" The men began working quickly and Ziva looked at him with worry. "What is it, Gibbs?" Gibbs stared at the elevator as he replied angrily, "DiNozzo, that's what."

BACK WITH TONY...

Tony sniffed as he trembled, tears running down his face. He was still huddled in his corner, sweating like a pig, and his eyes were dancing around the room quickly. Every now and then he would see someone sitting in the corner, talking to him, aiming a gun at him, and it frightened Tony. He didn't know what was going on. How could so many people be in the elevator when he was the only one?

He began to feel more and more alone and soon, he knew he would break. Tony wiped sweat off his forehead, whimpering slightly. He swallowed, shoving his face into his knees and sobbing. "Gibbs..." He whimpered, "Gibbs, where are you?" Tony looked around the room and saw someone holding a gun to his face. He jumped back and saw a smile play on the man's lips.

Tony quickly pulled out his gun and screamed, firing and hoping that it shot Bryce in the head. However, the bullet rickocheted and almost shot Tony in the shoulder, dropping softly next to him. He sobbed, his gun still smoking slightly as his hand trembled like crazy. "Stay the hell away from me!" He screamed, looking around angrily. He chewed on his lower lip and stood up, looking around. Tony rushed over to the elevator doors and began pounding on them.

"Let me out, let me out!" He screamed, his mind going back to the time he was locked underground in the car's trunk. Tony sobbed as he pounded the doors, then rushing over to pound the walls. He heard his phone ring and Tony stared at it, seeing Gibbs' number pop up. He rushed over to the phone and answered it.

"DiNozzo, I need you to calm down a bit! Alright? I'm right here. I'm right above you."

Tony blinked, letting the words soak in as he swallowed and looked up at the ceiling. However, what he saw did not ease him. Blood was dripping through the crack on the ceilling and for an instant, he thought he saw a face. Tony dropped his phone and began looking around for an exit. He sobbed harshly, screaming, "Where's the damn exit?!"

Everything around him became distorted and he began seeing poeple, hearing people laughing at him and seeing a few raising their guns. Tony screamed and fired several times.

BACK WITH GIBBS...

Gibbs jumped at Tony's screaming, screaming at the men to move their asses faster. They began working at a much faster pace as Ziva looked at Gibbs with worry. Gibbs was about to scream into the phone for Tony to calm down, when he heard several gunfires go off. He looked at one man and screamed, "OPEN THE DAMN HATCH!" The man nodded, opening the top of the elevator up and leaving Gibb to see what was inside.

There lay Tony DiNozzo, one of his strongest, bravest members of his team, lying on the floor, his gun lying next to his left hand, and tears staining his face. And there in the corner of the elevator lay a dead man, resting up against the side of the elevator wall. 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

"DiNozzo!"

"Yes, Boss?!" Tony's feet dropped to the floor in a matter of seconds, a heavy THUD ringing through the bullpen. The piece of pizza he had been eating landed on the floor as Tony sat up and he rubbed his eyes, trying to wake up enough to look at Gibbs, the man who had awoken him from his nightmare.

He looked at Gibbs and asked, "What is it, Boss?" Gibbs sighed and said, "We've got a case." He walked back over to his desk, leaving a confused Tony to blink and stare at everyone. They were all getting ready, but wasn't there a terrorist attack going on? Weren't they in lockdown?

Tony stood up, grumbling as he tossed his pizza into the garbage and then began grabbing his things. He followed after Gibbs quickly and asked, "Boss, someone tried to blow up your car, right?"

"Yep."

"Then shouldn't we be in lockdown? Didn't you tell us no one leaves the building?"

"I did, but we can't let the case go if it'll help us catch the bastard."

Tony blinked again, stepping into the elevator. He didn't understand what happened. One minute, he was talking with Abby and walking back up to the bullpen. And in the next, he was dreaming about breaking down in a frickin' elevator. Was he even awake?

"Boss...When did I fall asleep?" He asked, watching McGee push a button on the elevator. Gibbs glanced at Tony before saying, "The minute I started talking about staying in the building."

AT THE CRIME SCENE...

Ziva sighed as she looked at the scene before her. A dead body, male, was sitting before her in a metal chair and looked to be bound painfully...If the body could still feel. Blood trickled down the body's face, its eyes closed and multiple stab wounds to its torso. Its right leg had been severed from its body, which Tony was working on finding, and it had a hole entering the front of his head, exiting the back.

"Ziva," came McGee's voice suddenly, making her jump slightly. "I found something over here." Ziva looked back at McGee and walked over to him, bending down, looking at some sort of stain on the carpet. She took a picture and said softly, "It looks a bit like...Blood? Maybe." Just as McGee was about to speak, Tony's voice chimed in, "Red wine, actually."

The Israeli looked up at Tony and McGee nodded, saying, "Suggests that either this guy was drinking or the attacker." Tony shrugged as he played with his camera, saying, "Could've been both. Gregory used to drink all the time before...Uh, before parties and things." He smiled at them both and said, "He may have been an old bastard, but damn did he invite some hot babes over." McGee rolled his eyes and removed a swab from his bag, muttering, "Only you would think that, Tony."

Ziva stood up and moved on, ignoring the two and leaving them to their own conversation. She moved around the house, looking in closets and other bedrooms, not really sure what she was looking for exactly. All she knew was that something didn't feel right about the crime scene and what was going on. As she opened yet another door, she was struck over the head with something and found her face meeting the floor with a thud.

Tony sighed as he yawned, watching McGee put away the swab and move on. He looked at Tony and asked, "Where's Gibbs?" Tony smiled, taking out his container of pills, swallowing two pills, and laughing slightly. "He's busy getting information from the cops...Glad I'm not a cop anymore. Then I'd have to put up with Gibbs' angry side more." He frowned as he thought. "Damn is that an ugly side."

THUD

Tony instantly reached for his gun, McGee doing the same, and they both began walking down the only hallway in the house. As they walked, Tony saw Ziva's body lying halfway in a room, her other half in the hallway. He looked at McGee, earning a nod, and made his way a bit closer to the room. It was at this very moment that he heard a beeping noise.

McGee looked at Tony with alarm as Tony holstered his gun, shouting, "McGee, get my six!" He quickly began putting Ziva onto his back, looking up in time to see another dead body and a bomb died to her chest. The bomb was slowly counting down from fifteen, which left Tony and McGee barely enough time to alert everyon.

The two special agents began running from the house, the beeping fading behind them, and the second they made it out of the house, they ran into Ducky. He was about to say something, a smile playing on his lips, when McGee shouted quickly, "Bomb!" Tony following what he said with a loud, "HIT THE DECK!"

In the next second, the bomb went off; immense pressure and heat hitting everyone at the same time. Everyone had dropped to the ground as quickly as they could, but some were still hit by the blast.

When the bomb had died down a bit, leaving merely sore cops and agents, a few injured cops, and one very pissed off Gibbs, Tony opened his eyes. He was breathing heavily, from adrenaline he figured, and he didn't move from where he was. His vision faded in and out as he heard someone talking over him quickly, urgently.

As they spoke and Tony listened to the tone in their voice, he began thinking about how annoying it would be if he was injured again. Suddenly, he heard Ducky's voice ask, "Tony, can you hear me?!"

Tony went to nod, but his body wouldn't move. He felt like he was halfway between death and the living. He could hear and see everyone, but he couldn't move at all. He could barely speak as he heard everyone talking around him. Suddenly, as he looked up, he saw Bryce standing before him. How and why crossed his mind, before Bryce lifted his gun and smiled, laughing cockily.

As Tony stared at the barrel of the gun, he heard the gun fire and he passed out.

LATER ON...

Tony groaned as his eyes flickered open, staring at the blurred ceiling above him. He wasn't sure he was or even why he was here. All he could remember, was seeing--

"Bryce!"

He exclaimed, sitting up and seeing Gibbs standing next to him. He had an eyebrow raised, asking, "Nightmare?" Tony panted slightly, looking at Gibbs and saying with confusiong, "No...?" Gibbs blinked, asking, "Yes or no, DiNozzo?"

Tony sighed in annoyance at himself and heard a loud crack strike the air. He jumped and looked around, finally realizing that he was in Gibbs' guest bedroom. He looked at Gibbs and asked slowly, "What...Happened to Ziva, Boss?" Gibbs sighed and said, "She's fine, DiNozzo. Just a bump on the head." He nodded, asking, "And me?"

"Duck said you just needed some sleep. Bomb certainly helped."

Tony laughed slightly, laying back down and taking a deep breath. Gibbs looked him over a few times before saying, "DiNozzo...Ya been feelin' alright?" The younger agent looked at his boss and replied, "Yeah, why?" The older man didn't respond at first, before letting loose a long sigh and saying, "Duck wanted me to make sure you're not havin' any difficulty...Being alone." Tony nodded, remembering the talk he had had with the Scottish M.E. in the hospital.

It scared him a little to be alone, but not so much to the point where he thougth he couldn't live without someone next to him. That was just crazy talk. This was Anthony DiNozzo after all. He wouldn't be afraid of some stupid dark, lonely apartment he lived in.

Suddenly, he saw Bryce again, standing next to Gibbs. His eyes widened slightly as he looked away and swallowed, earning a "You alright?" from Gibbs. Tony didn't want to look back at Gibbs, fearing that Bryce was still there. He could feel himself drowning again, the water filling his lungs and running down his throat. It was the worst feeling he had ever experienced. Well, besides being shot, but he had never really been TRULY shot before.

He finally said to Gibbs softly, "Yeah...Yeah, I'm fine." Gibbs slapped him in the back of the head and Tony looked at him quickly. "What was that for?"

"You're not alright. What's going on?"

"Nothing. I'm fine."

Slap.

"Okay, Boss, stop."

Slap.

"I'm fine, cut it out!"

Slap.

"Stop it! I said I'm fine Da--!" He stopped himself, his breath hitching in his throat. He stared at Gibbs, watching the older man raise an eyebrow as he mumbled, "I...I didn't mean that. It slipped." Gibbs nodded and asked softer this time, "What's goin' on DiNozzo?" Tony looked up at Gibbs and sighed heavily, saying, "I...I keep seeing Bryce, Boss. He keeps popping up and then disappearing." He thought for a minute before finishing, "That's it...I swear."

Gibbs nodded and said sternly, "Get some sleep. We'll talk to Duck about it tomorrow." Tony's face dropped as he whined, "But I don't want to go talk about it! It's like seeing a therapist!" The older agent headslapped Tony again and said more seriously this time, "Get. Some. Sleep!" Tony thought about protesting before finally laying down and sighing in annoyance.

Gibbs stepped out of the room and flipped open his cellphone, staring down at the message before him.

THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

McGee sighed heavily as he stared at his computer screen. It was quiet in the NCIS building, seeing how he was the only one in the room at the moment, and McGee was trying to track down Gibbs' secret messenger. He was about ready to pound his head on the table and crack the computer screen in two. This was the third time he had tried tracking the damn thing and this was the third time it had said that the phone was off and he couldn't track it.

The youngest agent looked up at Gibbs' desk and blinked, not realizing that he had come in this morning at all. His coat was hanging off the back of his chair, but McGee only remembered Tony coming in and saying he was going to get pizza. Of course, he had to sneak off so that Gibbs wouldn't see, seeing as how everyone was to stay in the building at all times. However, Gibbs excused this rule when they had a case. The reason? Gibbs figured that if they collected the body and evidence fast enough, they would have time to solve the murder and get out of there alive.

"Probie!" Tony's fine chimed, making McGee sigh in annoyance. He looked up and watched as Tony set the pizza box on Gibbs' desk for the time-being and then slipped off his coat. He tossed it onto his chair and smiled, bringing the pizza over to McGee's desk. Tony sat on the edge of McGee's desk and placed the pizza on his lap, a huge grin playing across his lips. "I got some breakfast, Probie!" McGee rolled his eyes and looked at Tony, asking, "Don't you think it's a little too early for pizza, Tony?"

Tony laughed slightly as he stood up, placing the pizza box on McGee's desk, and walking over to his own. "It's never too late for pizza, McGeek! I mean, it's pizza. It's was NCIS agents eat." McGee took a deep breath before murmuring, "Sure, Tony." Tony began rummaging through his desk for something while McGee stood up and stretched. He walked around his desk and spun the piece of pizza around so that it was facing him. His butt was killing him after sitting for so long and he wouldn't mind standing up with a piece of pizza in his mouth. As McGee watched Tony look around for something, he went to open the pizza box.

---

Gibbs sighed as he walked down the small little hallway from the elevator leading to Abby's lab. According to Abby, the bomb had no signature and was one of kind. However, that didn't mean that the OTHER bomb wasn't from the same person. She was, unfortunately, still putting together that puzzle. She had, however, discovered that someone had to have been in the house in order to set off the bomb. This then lead to the second body Ducky had found in the room that Ziva had been knocked out in.

He was still pissed about his agents almost being killed and about the bomb setting off his car. Hell, that was a decent car. Got him where he needed to be when he needed to be there. Not it was gone and he had to go by another one. Of course, he wasn't like Tony and cared so deeply about his car that he would cry over it, but it still angered him. Not only that, but the text messages he kept getting couldn't be traced which put his agents in even more danger. If only they would give him clues about the next mur--!

BOOM

Gibbs immediately dropped to the ground, hearing the loud explosion and feeling the slight amount of pressure. It may not have been as deadly as the other two bombs, but it was definately enough for someone to have been injured. He looked up at the smoke filling the room from something that had once been lit and heard the fire alarms go off. He stood up and rushed over to the bullpen, his eyes widening at the sight he saw. McGee was lying on the floor with some serious burns on his face and arms and trying to stay awake. He was breathing heavily and every now and then he would groan or whimper in pain.

Tony was already at his side, making sure he would stay awake until the paramedics arrived. He was talking to the younger agent, smiling and talking about one of Tom Cruise's movies.

Gibbs rushed over to his agents as he looked at the remains of the pizza box, lying on the floor as nothing but a few pieces and ash. He turned to Tony and asked, "Call paramedics?" Tony nodded and looked at Gibbs, saying quickly, "On their way, Boss." He turned back to McGee and continued on with his story as Gibbs took a deep breath. He looked around at a few panicking people. There was nothing he could do at this point. However, now he felt even more fear. The terrosists were able to sneak bombs INSIDE the building now so it didn't matter if they left or stayed in the building.

Suddenly, Gibbs' phone rung. He picked it up immediately and looked down at the caller ID: Unknown. He sighed angrily and answered it. "What do you want?"

"We are not afraid to attack our own kind."

In the next minute, the line went dead and Gibbs knew instantly what he was talking about. He rushed from the building and down the stairs, beginning to call the only one of the team that had an accent almost identical to the man's on the phone: Ziva David.

WITH ZIVA...

Ziva sighed as she looked around for her jacket. She moved around a few boxes that she had yet to unpack and then in her bathroom, checking behind the door. She growled angrily as she rushed over to her dressar and slipped out her SIG. Ziva holstered the gun as she finally saw her jacket, lying on the floor beside her bed. She bent down and grabbed it, growling, "I do not know why it was there in the first place!" Ziva grumbled something in her foreign language before rushing over to the door. Suddenly, she heard something move. She shut the door and spun around, gun at the ready. She looked around every inch, every corner of her house very, very carefully.

As she moved, she heard something bump in her room. She pressed her back against the wall by her bedroom door and peered around the corner. When Ziva didn't see anyone, she decided it was clear to move on. However, the minute she stepped into her room, the bedroom door slammed into her, knocking her head against the doorframe, and causing her to pass out on the floor.

---

Gibbs sighed angrily as he stormed from his car and made his way up the stairs leading to Ziva's apartment. He had his gun at the ready and the minute he kicked in the door, he knew that Ziva wasn't there. Her gun and jacket were placed on the couch with a friendly little note signed to a Leroy Jethro Gibbs.

As Gibbs walked over to the couch and picked up the piece of paper after putting on a plastic glove, he looked around the room for anything that would give the rotten bastards away. He began catching his breath as he read the note, holding it away from his face.

FIVE HOURS IS ALL YOU HAVE TO FIND HER BEFORE WE PUT HER DOWN. YOUR OTHER AGENTS ARE NOT OUT OF THE LOOP YET. BE PREPARED.

Gibbs sighed angrily as he ran a hand through his hair and thought about ways that he could protect his most fragile agent; Tony.

AT THE HOSPITAL...

Tony sighed as he took a seat next to McGee's bed with a bag of chips. He looked at McGee and opened the bag, wondering how much longer it would be until the younger agent awoke. After riding in the ambulance with McGee and sitting in the waiting room for what seemed to be hours, he discovered that the burns weren't that serious. They wouldn't leave any scars, but it would take at least three weeks for him to heal.

As the senior field agent took a deep breath, he heard McGee's voice croak, "Get any...F-For me?" Tony looked up at McGee and smiled, saying softly, "I didn't know McGoo could tell any jokes." He looked down at his bandaged hands, which had been burned slightly from the blast, and then back up at McGee. McGee's eyes were still closed, but he appeared to be lucid enough to talk to.

"You don't...Kn-Know a lot...Of things....A-About me..." McGee murmured, making Tony smile again. He placed a chip in his mouth as he replied, "Same to you, Probie. But I do know enough about you to know you." Suddenly, McGee's eyes fluttered open and he turned to look at Tony. "I could...Tell you...A few things..." Tony blinked as he laughed slightly and said, "You're not dying, McGoo. The scars will heal pretty soon and you'll--!"

"Wh-What did...What did your dad do...To make you...F-Feel so powerless...Against him? Even now...?"

Tony stopped talking suddenly, feeling a wave of emotions hit him. However, he hid this on the outside with a smile as he said, "So that's what's been on your mind." He relaxed in his chair as he thought about a number of things that the fat bastard had done to him. Some were minor things, like hitting him when he was late or locking him in his room for a few hours when he misbehaved. Some were more major things, like the time he had shoved Tony down a flight of stairs and cracked his head open. When he had awoke two days later, his father told him that it was an "accident" and that he had "slipped and fell".

McGee closed his eyes again and murmured, "I won't...Tell anyone..." Tony chuckled slightly as he ate another chip, asking, "Yeah, right, Probie. The last time I believed that was when you told Kate when I lost my virginity." The younger of the two opened his eyes again and smiled, saying softly, "You shouldn't...Have pushed my...M-My buttons, then."

Tony nodded. Reasonable excuse. He was pretty good at pushing buttons, as his father knew very well, and he was also very good at pissing a lot of people off. He wasn't exactly sure why he was so good at it or why he enjoyed it sometimes, but it didn't matter to him.

"Well...Where would you like me to start, McGoober?" The older agent asked, eating a few more chips. As McGee thought, he said quietly, "The first time...He--He hit you..." He shut his eyes again as Tony took a long, deep breath.

"Alright, that's reasonable. The first time he hit me was when my mother died. When she was around and alive, he played the nice daddy role, but you could tell he didn't like me very much. You know those evil looks that parents give their kid when they don't want them to do something? Or the look Gibbs gives you when he wants you to shut up? It was kinda a mix between those two looks that he gave me. Anyway, my mother had died and about..." Tony thought, sticking another chip in his mouth. "Probably a month later, maybe less, can't really remember, I knocked over one of his vases. So...The big old fatty hit me, gave me a black eye." He smiled as he thought about it, suddenly losing his appetite as he set his bag of chips in the garbage. "After that, it kinda escalated. If he had a party, he'd lock me up in my room until it was over or when he remembered I was up there. If I said the wrong thing or disobeyed one of his orders, he would hit me. Oh! But there was one time when he uh..." He trailed off, looking at McGee.

"I snuck out of the house once, which didn't bother him, but when I came back, he was pissed off that I hadn't done my chores. He was yelling at me, threatening to lock me in my room again, and shoved me down a flight of stairs. I honestly don't think he had meant to do it. It was weird. Almost like he was acting on autopilot." He sighed heavily and thought about some other things he had done, however, he wasn't sure if McGee wanted to hear the rest.

"I'm still...Listening..." Came McGee's voice, weak and hoarse.

Tony nodded and sighed again, continuing, "When I went against him sometimes he would give me baths in cold water. And I don't mean just cold," he laughed slightly. "He would make sure my lips were turning blue. If they weren't, then he'd be sure they were. I remember that at one point he threatened to kill me and I believed him. That was mostly the reason I had run off. Surprised he even found me where I was...And that's pretty much my lifelong story."

He smiled and said, "But don't get me wrong. I mean, I was a pretty bad kid. I was always getting in his way and stuff, y'know? Bugging him and driving him over the edge. It was my own fault that he did the things he did and I guess I deserved what I got. He was just making sure I stayed in line."

"That what you think, DiNozzo?"

Tony jumped at the voice and spun around, looking at Gibbs. "Uh...Well, yeah. I mean, look at me, Boss." He laughed slightly. "Even you can't stand a single day with me around you. It's only natural that he went over the edge." He looked at McGee and sighed, realizing that the agent had fallen asleep long ago. He turned back to Gibbs and asked, "Everything all right?"

"No, DiNozzo. Everything is NOT all right. You didn't deserve any of his crap." Gibbs snapped, making Tony flinch slightly. "But, Boss, I mean...You gotta think of this from his point of view. I misbehaved and I was a pretty awful kid."

Gibbs sighed angrily and snapped a litle louder this time, "Doesn't matter! You were just a kid, Tony! Do you think I treated Kelly the way Gregory treated you?! Do you think I locked her up or beat her everytime she was bad?!" Tony shook his head and said quickly, "No of course not, Boss! But that's because you loved her, right?" Gibbs stopped fuming for a minute. It suddenly occurred to Tony that that was what Tony must've been thinking. At such a young age, Tony had known that his father had hated him, didn't want him, didn't want anything to DO with him. How could a child think that for that long and become the man that Tony was today?

"Tony," Gibbs began, however, he was cut off when his phone rang. He flipped it open and barked, "Yeah, Gibbs."

"Four hours."

The line went dead and Gibbs swore, making Tony stand up. "What is it, Boss?" Gibbs sighed angrily and looked from McGee to Tony. "They've got Ziva and we've got four horus, DiNozzo, do the math." He rushed from the room as Tony rushed after him. "What?! Boss, what do we do?"

"We treat this like any other case, but work faster this tiem, got me?" Gibbs asked, rushing out to his car, Tony on his heels. He nodded as he hopped into the car and said, "Got it, Boss! We going to see Abbs?" Gibbs didn't respond at first, just started his car. He let loose a sigh as he looked at Tony and said, "If you had been my kid, DiNozzo, I would've made sure you were loved everyday of your life." He then began driving as Tony was left staring at Gibbs and smiling slightly.

4:57:36 Time Left 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

Ziva David sighed heavily as she tried to escape the painful rope that was binding her to the metallic chair. She looked around the small room, looking strangely like an office, as she wondered if anyone was looking for her. Maybe they didn't even know she was missing yet.

She chuckled at the thought, knowing that nothing ever got by Gibbs and this was probably no different. So, all she could do was sit around and wait for someone to show up. Ziva wasn't sure how long she had been unconcious, nor did she know who had kidnapped her. It was strange to her, being the kidnapped one for once. The only other time she had been kidnapped was when she had left the NCIS team. Other than that one time, she was either with Tony when they were kidnapped or Tony was the one getting kidnapped.

Ziva took a deep breath, wincing at the slight pain in her ribs. She looked at the desk to her left and the shelves with books placed elegantly on them. She wondered why this place looked so homely, but didn't say anything as she sat there. She growled slightly and thought about the times Tony had been kidnapped and tortured lately. Would they do the same to her? She hoped they didn't, after seeing what Tony had gone through, she knew how awful it was.

Finally, the door opened and a strange man entered the room. He grinned like mad as he looked at Ziva, shutting the door behind him. His dark hair was pulled back into a small ponytail as his green eyes scanned her over. "Ziva David...Special Agent DiNozzo's girlfriend, correct?" Ziva didn't respond, watching him take a seat at his desk. She looked at the possessions on his desk and asked, "Why am I here?" The man sighed as he stared at her and replied, "Well, Ms. David, we need you here to use as a threat against the country." He leaned back in his chair slightly, closing his eyes and thinking. "I suppose the more detailed reason would be to kill you, show everyone here just what a threat we can be in a matter of seconds." He opened his eyes and chuckled softly.

"Think about it. No one will feel safe when they learn that we can even enter bombs into the NCIS building AND manage to kidnap one of their own!"

Ziva sighed angrily and looked up at the ceiling, asking, "How long will I be here?" The man looked at his computer, typing a few things into it before replying, "At least another," he glanced at his watch before looking up at Ziva with a crooked smile. "four hours and thirty minuters." She nodded before he stood up and walked over to her, chuckling softly. The man raised his fist before murmuring, "We have four hours to torture you Ms. David before we," he slammed his fist into her left cheek, finishing, "Set off the bomb...And make our escape."

WITH TONY AND GIBBS...

"Abbs, do you have anything?!" Gibbs asked quickly, walking into the room. Abby looked back at him and blinked a few times, before stammering, "Uhm...N-No, I mean, well, I tried, Gibbs! I...I really, really tried but he just! I can't find anything on these guys! No fingerprints, nothing out of the ordinary with the body, no links to the body, nothing! These guys are good, Gibbs! Really good!" Tony glanced at Gibbs, saying, "If their terrorists, they could be killing just for the hell of it, Boss." Gibbs gave him a dirty look, snapping, "Yeah, I know, DiNozzo." Tony let out a heavy sigh as Gibbs' phone rang. Looking at the ID, he looked at the two and stepped out of the room. "Yeah, Gibbs."

"I will give you the destination where we are hiding her, Special Agent Gibbs. However, you might want to come alone. I am not ordering you to come alone, but it is just a suggestion."

Gibbs took a deep breath, looking back at Abby and Tony who were talking amongst themeselves. He ran a hand through his hair before asking, "Where the hell is she?"

"One moment and I will send you the address."

The line went dead as Gibbs hung up and heard it ring once. He flipped it open, read the text, and rushed back into the room. "DiNozzo, let's go." Tony looked at Gibbs with confusion, asking, "You find her, Boss?" Gibbs didn't say anything, simply rushed from the room, as Tony sighed heavily and rushed after him. Abby fiddled with her hands as she murmured, "Go get her, guys."

As Gibbs pressed the elevator button and watched the doors open, he had to hold back a growl when he saw Jenny standing in the elevator. He stepped into the elevator, Tony close to his heels, and heard her ask, "Got a lead?"

"Yeah."

"What is it?"

"I don't think I need to tell you that, yet, Director."

"Well if you don't, Jethro, then I'll take you off this case."

Tony glanced from his boss, to his higher boss. Jenny glanced at Gibbs before he responded with an annoyed sigh, "Got her location. On our way there." Jenny nodded and asked, "Just you two?" She looked at Tony, then back at Gibbs. "I don't think that's a good idea." Tony didn't say anything, knowing that Jenny thought he was the most vulnerable one here nowadays. Gibbs responded rather angrily, "He can still do his damn job, Director Shepard. We'll be fine."

"I think I should help." She said suddenly, looking him in the eyes. Gibbs let out a heavy, annoyed sigh, stepping out of the elevator and rushing over to his desk. Jenny was standing in front of his desk as Tony and Gibbs began grabbing their badges, guns, and bullet-proof vests. Gibbs looked up at Jenny and asked, "What the hell are you standin' here for? Get your gear!" Jenny smiled as she rushed off, Tony giving him a "What are you thinking" look. "Boss, she hasn't--!"

"She's still a good agent, DiNozzo." He said, loading his gun. "And we need some more reinforcements." Tony nodded, sighing slightly as he finished slipping on his vest. He grabbed the car keys as he rushed to the elevator and hurried to start the car.

Gibbs had just finished putting on his vest before Jenny stood before him. "Ready?" She asked, smiling as she holstered the gun on her right thigh, and then the one on her left hip. Gibbs smiled slightly, rushing towards the elevator and hearing Jenny close behind him. He looked at her and asked, "you sure you're ready for this?" Jenny nodded as she pressed an elevator button and replied, "Jethro, I've been waiting for this for years." Gibbs looked at her and smiled softly, shaking his head.

BACK WITH ZIVA...

Ziva panted heavily as blood dripped down her chin. She was staring at the man before her as he laughed softly. He walked over to his desk and looked at something on his computer. He looked back up at Ziva and smiled. "Your friends are here earlier than I thought." Ziva felt her eyes widen slightly in fear for the others. Her black-and-blue left eye throbbed as she tried to escape from the chair. She growled angrily and watched as the man rushed over to her, grabbing her hair and pulling on it harshly, making Ziva whimper. She panted heavily as she listened to the man whisper in her ear, "My name is Arein, Ziva David, and I will be the man standing beside you as we die together."

3:32:12 Time Left 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

I apologize for the wait everyone. I had no idea what else to write for the next chapter, so I was watching a lot of NCIS episodes and reading up on some NCIS fanfics for some ideas. I still couldn't think of anything, so I went to CSI and some Criminal Minds episodes. Then I got a good idea and started writing it, but then I got sick. T_T After that, I had to catch up on school work and here we are. XD Anyway, here's the story. ^_^

Gibbs sighed heavily as he swerved into an abandoned parking lot, staring at the large building in front of him. He stepped out of the car quickly, pulling his gun out of the holster. He looked back at Jenny and Tony as he made his way towards the back door. Tony rushed up to him, asking quietly, "Boss, do you really think the director is up to this?" Gibbs glanced at him before standing beside the door, not answering. He looked at Tony as Tony took a deep breath and moved away from the door.

Jenny looked at the two, smiling faintly, and kicked in the door. She immediately rushed in, looking into empty rooms and aiming her gun in front of her. Gibbs and Tony followed, moving quickly. Jenny rushed into a room, Gibbs behind her, as Tony rushed down the hallway and looked around for Ziva.

He opened a nearby door, peering in before walking in. Tony looked around, hearing water driping and footsteps above his head. He looked up at the floor and suddenly felt something touch his leg. He jumped and let out a quick yelp, almost falling down onto his ass.

Gibbs and Jenny rushed in, getting ready to shoot. However, Gibbs rolled his eyes when he saw a rat rush from the room. "Dammit, DiNozzo." He mumbled, walking into the room. Tony stood up straight as he said quickly, "Sorry, Boss. I wasn't looking so I didn't know what it was." Jenny sighed softly and mumbled, "Where do you think she is?" Tony glanced at Gibbs, still disgusted by the rat and looking around, prepared for another "rat attack".

The grey-haired agent took a deep breath before hearing the footsteps above his head. He stood still, trying to listen to the noises as Tony whispered, "Oh yeah! I forgot to tell you about those." Gibbs gave him a dirty look as he sighed heavily, rushing from the room and down the long hallway. At one point, the hallway split into two. He glanced at Tony, watching him nod before rushing down the right hallway. Jenny began following Gibbs down the left hallway as they tried to find people and a flight of stairs.

Jenny looked around, looking for something that was out of the ordinary or something that could give them away. Suddenly, she heard a gunshot. Gibbs turned around quickly, looking around. Jenny froze, listening quietly and trying to figure out where the gunshot came from. As they listened, Jenny whispered, "It could've been Tony." She glanced at Gibbs as he shook his head, whispering back, "He'd scream first." The director smiled and held back a laugh, listening to the sounds around them.

Suddenly, there was another loud bang and Jenny turned around. Someone was standing in the doorway with a strange, white, Scream mask on and a gun in their hands. The sight made her skin crawl as she aimed at the person, watching Gibbs doing the same. He watched as the man raised his gun before firing twice. In an instant, the man had fallen over, blood pooling from his body. He took a deep breath, looking back at Jenny and murmuring, "It was a trap." Jenny blinked, asking, "You got that out of shooting one person?!" Gibbs didn't answer as he began rushing back down the hallway and down the hallway Tony was in. Jenny was right behind him, hearing another gunshot. She tried to think as to where they would've hid Ziva and as they ran, she thought she heard Ziva's voice.

---

Tony sighed heavily as he opened door after door after door. He was getting sick and tired of these "Kidnap-and-Now-Find-Me" games. Why couldn't people just kidnap someone, tie them up, torture them for a bit, and put them in the middle of a busy parking lot or something.

Taking a deep breath, Tony heard someone say something. Freezing in his tracks, he looked around and felt a twang of pain strike his head. He bit his lower lip, still looking around and then setting his gun down a bit. Tony kept alert as he slipped his pills out from his pocket and placed two into his hand. He swallowed them down quickly before thinking silently. He heard someone call out his name and he jumped, looking around quickly. Tony slipped the pills back into his pocket and held up his gun. When he turned to a door, he jumped back and gasped, seeing none other than Bryce standing in the doorway. He swallowed, taking a few steps back.

He had to keep reminding himself that he was dead, so as not to fire on the man. However, Bryce began moving towards him and Tony felt his finger beginning to pull the trigger. He watched the familiar smile stretch across Bryce's face and almost instantly, fired his gun. Tony jumped at the sound of his gun and watched as Bryce vanished. Confused, Tony stood there and stared at the place where Bryce had once been. He began moving towards the door and at that very moment, someone stabbed a syringe into Tony's right arm. Wincing and let out a short yelp, he turned to punch the person. However, he had turned around only in time to watch the person slam a door in Tony's face.

Tony began breathing heavily, watching as his vision blurred and Bryce appeared everywhere. Occassionally, Ziva would appear and Tony would go to run for her, but she would vanish before he could get there. He was beginning to get sick now, the room spinning faster than he liked it to, and he saw someone running at him. The person was holding a gun and Tony had no idea who he was. Squinting, he tried to figure out who it was, but realized that it was Bryce running at him.

Tony raised his gun, heard Gibbs yell for him to stop something, and fired. In the next instant, Tony watched blood splatter onto Gibbs' face as he fell onto his face. If only he knew who he had shot.

---

Awaking with a slight groan, Tony heard someone calling his name softly. He looked up with sleepy eyes and made contact with none other than Ziva. He smiled softly and mumbled, "Ziva..." Ziva nodded, blood still dripping down from her mouth over the dry, crusted blood. She was shaking as she whispered quickly, "Tony, wake up! Please!" Tony heard fear in her voice.

Fear? Ziva was never afraid...So why was this any different?

As Tony thought this over, he felt a sharp pain in his ankle. "Ow!" He yelled, his head suddenly becoming more clear. He looked around at the room they were in, similar to the hallways; cold, dark, and moist. There was light streaming in through small, rectangular windows above the wall behind Tony and dirt covered the ground.

Blinking a few times, Tony felt a few more flashes of pain all over his body as he began focusing more on the situation. Ziva finally became clear, as did the rats crawling all over Tony's body. Tony felt like screaming when he saw the rats running up his body and nibbling at his skin in some places. He held his breath in what he presumed to be fear and swallowed a few times. He winced as their teeth made contact with his skin and he tried to shake them off.

Ziva hissed quickly, "Tony, stop it! You cannot move!" Tony glared at her and snapped, "Why not?!" Ziva sighed in annoyance and whispered harshly, "Because there are fire ants underneath your chair, Tony!" Tony froze, feeling fear run through his body as he began thinking about the rats and the he moved, the ants would eat him alive. If he didn't move, the rats would. He began to panick sligthly, his heart pounding in his chest and ears as he tried to think of something to do, something to make the rats stop.

"Tony!" Ziva snapped quickly, watching as he looked up at her with a look of surprise. "Listen to me! All you need to do is remain calm for another ten minutes! Then Arein will be back and he--!"

"How the hell do you know him?!" Tony whispered harshly. Ziva sighed in annoyance and snapepd back, "He told me his name! Would you calm down?!" The senior filed agent was about to snap back, but instead took a deep breath and tried to calm down.

They sat like that for ten minutes; calm and quiet, fearing the worst. When their ten minutes were up, Arein walked in with Gibbs by his side. Gibbs was handcuffed and walking slowly, blood dried to his face. Tony stared at Gibbs, wondering if Arein had hurt him or killed someone in front of Gibbs. However, he never asked as Arein tied Gibbs to a chair and shooed the mice away from Tony. Letting out a deep sigh of relief, Arein looked Tony in the eyes. He grinned widely and walked out of the room.

He left the door open as Tony's mind suddenly clicked, looking at Gibbs. "Hey, where's the Director?" Ziva's face scrunched up in confusion as she asked, "Jenny came with you?!" Gibbs didn't respond as he simply stared at the door. Tony saw what he thought to be pain and sadness in Gibbs' face and he dropepd the subject, feeling a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach. He wondered if something was wrong or might've happened. Maybe Jenny had been kidnapped too or something.

Arein stepped into the room again, ruining Tony's thoughts, and dragged a very limp, very dead Jenny Shepard into the room. He placed her neatly in front of Tony, placing her hands on her chest, and turning her open eyes towards Tony.

The first thing Tony thought of was Kate. He stared at the hole in Jenny's head and saw Kate again, sitting on the metallic table, never to wake up again.

He looked back up at Arein with angry, confused eyes as Arein chuckled softly and walked out of the room.

Ziva looked at Jenny and then at Gibbs, asking quickly, "Gibbs! What ha--?!"

"He shot her." Gibbs spoke softly, in a hoarse voice. He was staring at the door still, not saying anything, but feeling like crap. He felt weak and pathetic, like he should've been able to do something. Tony looked back at Jenny and whispered, "Arein...Shot her, Boss? When?" He looked at Gibbs and swallowed slightly. Ziva was staring at the two from where she sat; on the opposite wall of the two men.

"No, DiNozzo," Gibbs said suddenly, making eye contact with Tony and watching the familiar fear and pain fill Tony's face. "You did." 


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

Tony didn't know what to say or what to do. He had no memory of ever shooting Jenny, of even seeing Jenny, All he could remember was shooting Bryce and hearing Gibbs...Yell for him to stop.

He felt sick to his stomach as he looked at the floor beneath him and bit his lower lip. He took a deep breath before murmuring, "I shot Bryce, Boss." He looked over at Gibbs and nodded, almost as though he were trying to reassure himself of that. "I know I did. I saw him."

"Bryce is dead, DiNozzo!" Gibbs shot, feeling anger fill his body. How the hell could Tony say such a thing?! He of all people should've known that Bryce was dead! He had been there when Gibbs had put a damn hole in the bastard's big fat head!

Tony nodded, looking up at the ceiling and resting the back of his head on the wall. He heard Ziva ask softly, "Gibbs...Do we have any clue as to how to get out of here?" She was upset about Jenny, but she wanted to get out of here. Wanted to give Jenny the proper burial she desreved. She was hurt and sore and wanted to be somewhere safe.

"I don't know," Gibbs replied softly, looking at her. "I didn't have...Time to check, Ziva." Tony listened to the two as he felt a warm substance crawl down his face. He smiled sligthly in pure annoyance, knowing that it was blood from one of the mice that had bitten him. He sighed angrily and growled, "McGoo better be doing better than we are!" Ziva looked at Tony and then at Jenny at his feet. She was still staring at Tony and she felt sick to her stomach. She wondered what was going through Tony's head, what he must be thinking at this exact moment. Did he think he was a killer? Did he think that he didn't deserve to live anymore?

"Two hours left." Came a loud voice, making Ziva jump. She looked at the door and saw Arein standing in the doorway. He sighed heavily as he walked into the center of the room and looked over everyone. "Wow...This is truly a pathetic crowd indeed." He laughed slightly, looking at Jenny, and the at Tony. "We even have a few traitors on the team."

Tony swallowed back an insult as he glared at the man. He knew he hadn't shot Jenny, but Gibbs said he had. However, he had no memory of shooting her. Nor did he recall even seeing Jenny. How the hell could he have shot her if he didn't remember any of it?!

"Well, I suppose drugs didn't help with your focus, now did it?" Arein asked, grinning like mad. Tony felt his anger snap as he knew what had happened, remembered what had happened. He had been drugged. He had seen Bryce and Ziva and Bryce coming at him! He had shot Jenny thinking it was Bryce!

"Too bad. She was a beauty." Arein continued, looking Tony in the eyes. Tony suddenly snapped, "Back off you bastard!" The Israeli man raised an eyebrow in interest and began walking towards Tony. He grinned like mad and asked, "Why should I?" "Because I've had enough of your sorrr-asses already! Do you have any idea how similar you are to each and every idiot who kidnaps me?!" Tony shouted, feeling more and more anger flow through his body, adreanline pumping through his veins. "You don't even have a damn motive!"

Suddenly, Arein grabbed Tony's neck, holding onto it tightly. He glared at Tony, looking into Tony's green eyes with his won, cold, dark eyes. He whispered harshly, "You're a fiesty one. I think we can get along well." Suddenly, he kicked Tony's chairs several times and watched as ants began swarming his body. Tony felt fear run through his body and winced as pain began striking his body. He held his breath, keeping his mouth closed as the ants bit down on his body.

Arein walked over to Gibbs and turned him towards Tony. He then walked over to Ziva, untying her body and lifting her by her right arm. Her feet were bound together with handcuffs, along with her hands. He laughed as he walked out of the room and said softly, "Well, I'll just take care of this one then. I'm sure she's a lot of fun to...Play with." Tony flinched and for an instant, forgot all about the ants as he screamed loudly, "Leave her alone, you bastard! ZIVA! STOP! LEAVE HER ALONE!" He felt a burning sensation crawl up his body and he yelled out in pain, panting heavily as he placed his head back on the wall.

Gibbs was trying to get loose, trying to help Tony, as Tony sat there, taking slow breaths and keeping his mouth shut. He was beginning to fear for his life as he felt the ants continue to attack his body. As he felt the ants, trying to hold back his yells, he could hear Ziva in the other room yelling in pain. He closed his eyes tightly and held back tears of frusturation, anger, and pain.

Tony was beginning to honestly think: Let me die already.

---

Ziva growled angrily as she stared around the dark room. Her hands and feet had become unbound as her knuckles and feet bled. They had stripped Ziva of her weapons and shoes, seeing if she could fight the men Arein paired her with. She heard something move and slammed her foot into it, feeling a sharp pain. She cried out in pain, taking a few steps back. Ziva trembled as she looked at her foot and saw blood dripping from her ankle. She swallowed and heard someone speaking softly to her, telling her to calm down and die.

Laughing slightly, Ziva wiped blood from her mouth and suddenly turned around, her fist making contact with a face. She watched as a man stumbled into her line of view and she slammed her fist into his rib, hearing it snap. He began to lose air as he writhed in pain and began gaping like a fish. Ziva looked around the rest of the room and heard Arein's voice call out loudly, "It appears that I was wrong. The bomb is actually set to go off at around three o'clock, which is in another...Half an hour."

Ziva froze as she whispered, "The school!" She glared into the darkness and snapped, "You're going to kill the children too?!" Arein laughed as he yelled back, "Yes, yes I am! Because without the children, there can be no adults! And without the adults, there will be no one getting in our way! Not to mention that everyone will be all afraid to come out of their damn homes because of us! Hahahahaha!"

Ziva sneered and raised her right fist, bringing it down as she screamed, "You sick bastard!" Suddenly, someone grabbed her hair and yanked her back. Ziva yelled loudly in pain as she held onto the hands, feeling like her scalp was on fire. Tears rolled down her cheeks from the pain that rushed through her and heard Arein whisper, "Five minutes. That's all you have to get them and escape." He then let go of her hair and opened the door, grinning like mad. Ziva didn't move until Arein said softly, "I'm a Kamikaze, by the way. I don't mind dying." Ziva then quickly rushed from the room and towards the room where Tony and Gibbs were being held.

00:05:23 Time Left 


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

"Boss?" Tony whimpered through the silence. His body was burning, aching with pain after the ants had chewed him to pieces a few minutes ago. Gibbs hadn't said a word to Tony, nor had he tried to help him. He had simply sat there and stared at Jenny.

When he didn't respond, Tony chewed on his lower lip. He took a few steady breaths before he murmured softly, "Boss...I'm really sorry." He swallowed a few times, before finsihing, "I didn't...I didn't mean to shoot her I just--!"

"It's your own damn fault she's dead, DiNozzo. If you hadn't been taking those damn frickin pills..." Gibbs stopped, feeling his anger boil. He wanted to wait until he was out of this place and could pound some sense into Tony. Literally. He wanted the boy to understand that because of his stupid recklessness, he had killed one of their own. He had killed their director and Gibbs' lover. How the hell could someone do such a thing?!

"Y-You knew...About those?" Tony asked weakly, feeling his heart in his throat. "I..." He couldn't think of anything else to say. He had thought he had kept those a secret. But they were the only thing that helped Tony with the pain that he felt; mentally and emotionally. It killed him inside that Gibbs knew. Of course Gibbs knew. Why would Tony think any different?

As they sat there, Gibbs responded sourly, "Don't expect any damn sympathy when we're out of this. You've got three hours to get all of your stuff and get out of my house."

Tony nodded, taking a deep breath. He clenched his teeth together as he stared into empty space and began regretting a lot of things that he had been doing. Suddenly, the pain didn't seem so bad anymore. He nodded again and felt his eyes watering. However, he held back the tears, knwoing that he deserved every ounce of hate that Gibbs was spewing. Tony had screwed up big time and this time, it wasn't because he was going crazy. This time, it wasn't because he was in shock or in fear. This time, it was because of Tony's recklessness' and his horrible choices.

Suddenly, the door opened and a frantic Ziva rush in. She began freeing Tony and then rushed over to Gibbs, getting him loose as well. When they were standing, Gibbs rushed towards Jenny, picked her up, and rushed from the room, more than happy that he could get out of there and away from Tony. Ziva glanced at Tony before rushing after Gibbs, Tony behind her, and saying quickly, "Gibbs, we only have four minutes left!" Gibbs didn't respond as he flew through the hallways and down a flight of stairs. Tony was having trouble keeping up with them, but didn't say anything as he rushed behind them.

"Keep up, Special Agent." Gibbs snapped. Ziva jumped slightly at the harshness of his words and she glanced back at the lagging Tony. She frowned sadly and watched as he began picking up his pace. She whispered softly, "Tony...It...It wasn't your fault..." Tony didn't respond as Ziva looked at Gibbs and said with alarm, "The children! Gibbs, he's trying to blow up the kids at the school as well!" Gibbs slammed open a door and began loading Jenny into the back of the sedan. He looked at Ziva and snapped, "Drive, Ziva!" He rushed towards the school as Tony and Ziva both got into the car.

Gibbs began yelling for people to get down, watching them hit the ground and heard Ziva swerving off as fast as she could. He put himself over a few children just in time to hear a rather large BOOM!

He heard the building behind him explode into pieces and watched as a few flaming pieces landed next to him. Gibbs panted heavily as he looked back at the building and he took one deep breath, grateful that he would be able to give Jenny a proper burial. She deserved that much...

NCIS BUILDING...

Donald "Ducky" Mallard whistled slightly as he flipped through a few pages in his report lying in front of him. He was sitting at his desk calmly, unaware of the events that had happened outside of the NCIS building. All he knew was that he had finally been able to get some of Tony's bloodwork and was examining it thoroughly. Something had seemed strange about the boy, so he had insisted on taking some of his blood. After some bribing about his old records and a few boring lectures, Tony finally agreed to give him some of his blood.

However, what he was seeing was not good. Sighing, Ducky was about to flip the page when he heard the doors open behind him. Spinning around him, he smiled and began saying, "Good after--....Oh my." He murmured the last bit, watching as Gibbs played Jenny gently on one of the metallic tables. He closed her eyes for her and stood over her, looking over her body and wondering what to do. Was it the right thing to say to Tony? Should he have treated Tony the way he had? Of course. Tony had been an idiot. A stupid, stupid kid who knew he was doing the wrong thing, but thought he'd be fine.

Funny how that had worked out.

"Jethro," Ducky murmured, walking over to his dear friend. "What...What happened to her?" Gibbs didn't respond at first, until he heard the doors open again and he heard Ziva's voice say softly, "She was shot, Ducky." Gibbs sneered as he snapped, "Frickin DiNozzo shot her." He looked up at Ducky and watched as the man frowned, asking, "Why did--?"

"Damn idiot was taking pills he didn't need." Gibbs growled, looking at Ziva. "Where the hell is that bastard?!" Ziva stared at Gibbs as she thought about telling him or not. She then sighed slightly and turned towards the door, watching as Tony walked in. His arms were covered in bandages, no doubt his legs and torso were as well, but he didn't seem to be to beat down by the ants. However, he looked straight at Gibbs and croaked, "Right here...Boss."

Gibbs smiled as he walked over to Tony and stared him in the eyes. "Give 'em to me." He snapped angrily. Tony didn't understand at first, but then quickly grabbed his pills and handed them over to Gibbs. Gibbs looked down at his watch and then up at Tony, saying, "You've got two hours, DiNozzo!" He stormed from the room as Tony simply sat there. He smiled softly and watched as Ducky began working on Jenny. Ziva grabbed Tony's arm and pulled him out of the room. She looked at Tony and whispered softly, "Tony, give him some time! Gibbs will surely heat up to you soon!"

Tony was too aggravated, annoyed, depressed, and scared to correct Ziva. He simply took her hands off his arm and kissed her softly on the lips. When he pulled away, he whispered softly, "I know how to end this. Don't worry." With those words, he walked into the elevator and sighed heavily. Pressing a button, he watched as his view on Ziva vanished.

Making it to the bullpen, Tony began removing his gun and badge. He looked through his drawers and began tossing things into the garbage. He then ripped out one of the drawers and placed it onto his desk. Looking up, he watched as Gibbs began filling out his report. He sighed heavily and tossed his badge and gun into the drawer full of Gibbs' awards. Walking over to Gibbs' desk, he set the drawer on the side of his desk, grabbed his jacket, and walked over to the elevator. He looked at Gibbs before taking a deep breath and stepping into the elevator; dredging every step he took.

Gibbs didn't look up at the drawer, too pissed off to even acknowledge Tony's presence. He hadn't even realized that Abby had come to pick up Tony's gun to use in some "experiment" for her. So, when the phone rang, he hadn't realized that it had been at least an hour and a half. Sighing angrily, he leaned back in his chair and began thinking of Jenny. He felt awful. He had been so close, yet he hadn't been able to save her. He should've taken the damn pills away from Tony when he had the chance!

Finally, Gibbs answered the phone and growled, "Gibbs."

"Jethro!" Ducky's voice said frantically on the other end. "You have to come down here immediately!" Gibbs slammed the phone, fearing there was something wrong with Jenny's body, and rushed down to the basement. Once there, he came into the room and looked at Ducky, asking, "What is it, Duck?" Ducky stared at Gibbs with sad, desperate eyes as he looked at Jenny and pointed to her head wound. "Jethro," he began, placing his hands on the table and saying calmly, "A single bullet was fired from Anthony's gun." Gibbs literally cringed at the name of Jenny's killer and growled, "I know. He killed her."

Ducky looked at Gibbs and said quickly, "Not his bullet." Gibbs froze, staring at Ducky with wide, confused, and suddenly shocked eyes. "What?" "It was not his bullet, Jethro." Ducky stated again and handed him a piece of paper. "Abby tried to match the bullets, but none of dear Anthony's bullets match up." He then flipped the page for Gibbs and pointed to something on the paper, saying with sorrow, "Jethro...Our little Anthony was actually supposed to be on those pills. They were really helping him to recuperate. Of course, we didn't know this, but I called his doctor and he told me that it was actually a good thing he hadn't taken himself off the pills. He had needed them! The hallucinations were caused by Anthony's pills, his drugs, being drugged! Anthony was drugged without even knowing it, Jethro!"

In a matter of seconds, Gibbs dropped the clipboard and rushed from the room. He felt sick to his stomach now. This was exactly what the bastard Arein wanted. He wanted everything to end this way, for Tony to think he was going crazy, for Gibbs to think Tony shot Jenny. But why? What was his reson?

That didn't seem to matter Gibbs now. All that mattered to him was finding Tony and saving him from himself. He knew Tony by now and knew that he would do something stupid. Knew that he would do something reckless and out of the blue...Something very Tony.

However, what was even worse was how awful Gibbs felt for saying the things he had said, thinking the things that he had. He had truly believed that Tony was beginning to betray him. How could he think that? After all him and the boy had been put through, after all the years of working together! He wanted to headslap him self until he was black and blue. How could he have let things come to this?!

Another twenty minutes, and Gibbs had made it to his house. He had never drove that fast in his entire life, but that didn't matter as he rushed to the door and slammed it open. He began running through the house, checking every room for any sign of Tony. However, when he came to the bathroom, he felt like he had just stepped into a hallucination. Where Tony's things had once been, his cleaning products, were now gone, leaving Gibbs a shiny, new-looking sink. The same went for the living room; it was completely spotless.

Another Year

Has Come and Gone again

Look around

And think where have you been

Gibbs nodded a few times as he sat down against the wall of the hallway and thought, running a hand through his hair. He felt so lost and hopeless and grabbed his phone. He stared back up at the bathrooom, before dialing in Tony's phone number.

Trace the Lines

On your face tonight

And don't forget

That this will pass in time

Ziva sighed as she lay on her couch, staring at her television. After hearing about Tony quitting, she had rushed home to think about everything. Watching what was on, she felt a tear roll down her cheek and a smile place itself onto her lips. She wiped the tear away quickly and looked at the clock. She then looked up at the televison, showing Magnum P.I. and before she knew it, she was crying into her pillow. She was ashamed at the way she was acting and she didn't dare look up, knowing that the show would remind her of Tony. She was beginning to think what was going through his head and why he had done the things he did, but she would never know.

It's cold out this morning

You should be getting into bed

Can't believe its that time

Of year again

Tony sighed heavily as he looked at the room before him. He had just paid for the room for a night and then planned on taking his Mustang and driving as far away as he could from Washington D.C. and the others. Admitted, he would miss Ziva, Abby, Ducky, McGee...And even Gibbs. He knew that what he had done would never be forgiven and he knew that Gibbs and him would never be the same. Tony had felt as though Gibbs was his father, and now that was gone...And it was Tony's fault.

Curled up tight

A darker shade of white

Thinking Back could be here for a while

Tony thought back to the look on Gibbs' face when he had stepped into the autopsy room. He could still see the pain and anger etched on his face when he told Tony that he had shot Jenny. However, he began thinking about maybe living a normal life with no more kidnappings and no more torture. Maybe he could finally smile and live on.

Its cold out this morning

And it's getting harder to pretend

Can't believe it's that time of year again

Tony plopped himself down onto the bed, sitting on the edge, and placed his head into his hands. He felt like breaking down and crying, calling someone and asking for guidance. However, he knew that was impossible and all he could do was lay back on his bed and slowly hope that one day, his life would turn around. He hoped that someday, something great would happen and everything would turn around.

He had extreme doubts.

Can you believe the life you led?

Did you achieve the goals you set?

Did you lose your mind?

Well and then

Is there a reason you own them

It is a season that won't end

Can't believe it That time of year again

When Tony heard his cellphone ring, he blinked and reached for it. He stopped when he saw the caller ID: Gibbs. He felt fear take over him and pain, feeling like he was walking on air. He rolled over onto his right side and closed his eyes tightly, trying to ignore the sounds. When the phone kept ringing over and over and over again, Tony reached over and shut the thing off. He then took a deep breath and relaxed. After a while, he finally felt asleep and hoped, prayed, and wished that everything would change and it would change fast.

Another year

Has come and gone again

Look around

and wonder what happened

Gibbs sighed as he slammed the phone shut and stared at the bathroom. He stood up and made his way over to the kitchen. He took a deep breath and stared at everything around him. He could almost hear Tony whining for some food or complaining about some sort of crap. It had been Hell being with Tony so long, but every now and then, Tony would keep quiet and keep to himself.

Gibbs had been so close to helping the poor boy realize just how much he was loved, just how much he deserved to be happy. And now...Now he had ruined it. He had ruined everything, destroyed everything he had worked so hard to build.

Taking a deep breath, Gibbs picked up his phone and dialed a number. Waiting, he heard someoen answer and he began talking softly.

"Hey...I need help tracking down an agent of mine. Think you can help out?"

"Leroy Jethro Gibbs wants help from me? Really? Now that's surprising!"

"Not in the mood, Ryan. Can you do it?"

"Sure. Name; first and last."

"Anthony DiNozzo."

There was a sligth pause before Ryan chuckled, replying, "Well, Jethro, you'll never believe where he is. About...Two hours away from where you are; local hotel. Oh and did you hear the news?"

"No, " Gibbs snapped, rushing to his car. "What?"

"Well, the good news is that I'm going to be your director now. The bad news, well, the bad news is that, according to what I have here, there have been recent terrorist attacks striking a few buildings."

"Yeah and you don't think I know that?!" Gibbs snapped, slamming on the gas.

"Oh so you do. But did you know that this group is being led by a man named Arein?"

"Ryan."

"I'm not done! You'll never believe who his partner in crime is! He's actually being held in custody right now for questioning!"

"Who, Ryan?!"

"Eli David." 


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9:

MUST READ TO UNDERSTAND NEXT CHAPTER! A warning for the next chapter: It will open up with Tony being in a memory, so the entire chapter is a memory. Just wanted to let you guys know incase you got confused. ^_^

Eli David.

That was the missing piece to the puzzle.

Almost instantly, Gibbs slammed on the breaks and snapped into the phone, "He's being held in custody?" He heard Ryan murmur something to himself before replying, "Uh, actually...No. My bad, wrong information on my end. Stupid tech-mor--Ah! Here it is! Okay, Eli David...He was holding Arein in custody for a bomb threat in Israel. Arein escaped, or Eli let him go, and thus, we have the things in our country going on." There was a slight pause as Gibbs tried to think, before Ryan said suddenly, "Hey, I got to go. Getting on my plane soon. I should be in the NCIS building in about three hours."

Gibbs hung up and knew that he needed to fix this somehow. Hearing a car beep behind him, he growled before he began driving again. He sped up and picked up his phone, calling Ziva. He waited until he heard her pick up to begin talking. "I need you and Di--" he stopped himself and felt like an idiot for almost including Tony. All he had was Ziva...McGee was still in the hospital, Jenny was dead, and Tony had run.

"I need you down at the NCIS building in ten minutes." He hung up and sighed heavily, rubbing his forehead in frusturation. His turn was come up and suddenly, he took a sharp turn to the right and began flooring it.

~Break~

Gibbs sighed heavily as he rushed into the hospital and requested Special Agent Timothy McGee's room. When the nurse had given him the room number, he rushed down the hallway and into McGee's room. He stared at his injured agent before standing beside his bed and asking softly, "McGee, you up?" When McGee didn't answer, Gibbs sat down beside him. He took a deep breath before running a hand through his hair and saying, "Jen's dead." McGee still didn't say a word, so Gibbs continued, "DiNozzo ran off. Quit. Now we've got Eli David after him..."

"S-Sounds like...You're...You're in some...Real trouble...." McGee finally croaked, opening his eyes and looking over at Gibbs with a slight smile. His body was aching and he amazed that all of this had happened so soon. It felt like a few minutes ago he had just been talking to Tony.

Gibbs smiled slightly as he replied, "Yeah...A lot of trouble." He wasn't sure why he had come to see McGee, why he was even talking to him. Maybe it was because he hadn't come to see him yet, but he had made sure Tony was alright every day he was in the hospital. Then again, he was closer to Tony than with McGee...Not anymore.

"Ya know when you're being let out?" Gibbs asked finally, standing up and opening his phone. He heard McGee say softly, "Should be...Going home...Next week, Boss." Gibbs nodded and asked, "Where's your cellphone?" McGee closed his eyes as he replied, "In my...Desk...I don't...Think it was...Harmed in the...Blast." That was enough for Gibbs to go rushing from the room and close his phone. When he was in his car, he began speeding off towards the NCIS building and he hoped that if he called Tony from McGee's phone, he'd answer and heed his warning about Eli David.

However, knowing Tony, the man was probably smarter than that and wouldn't pick up for anyone. It was times like these that Gibbs really wished that the man was a little smarter.

~With Tony~

Tony smiled and thanked a woman before taking the bag softly from her hands and walking out of the small store. He walked over to his car and sighed, tossing the bag into the passenger seat and then climbing into the driver's seat. Turning on the car, he sighed heavily and stared at the road before him. "I hate gas stations." He murmured, buckling and then driving off. Halfway down the road, he heard his phone ringing. Sighing in annoyance, Tony pulled over on the side of the road and began searching for his phone. When he found it, he looked at the caller ID and blinked, wondering if McGee should or should not be out of the hospital by now.

Finally, after he finished wondering, he answered the phone and smiled, saying, "Hey McGoo. Can you talk normally now?" He grabbed a bag of chips as he listened to the voice on the other end speak. "DiNozzo, listen to me."

Tony felt his heart sink into his stomach as he listened and tried to remain calm. "B--Gibbs? Why...Why are you talking to me?" He opened the bag of chips and began driving off again, placing a hand on the steering wheel. "DiNozzo, you didn't ki--!"

The last bit was cut off when something heavy and hard slammed into the back of Tony's car, causing Tony to drop his phone and almsot slam his forehead into the steering wheel. Swearing, Tony looked into his rearview mirror and saw a black SUV slamming into the back of his Mustang. He groped for his phone as he tried to slam on the gas and get away from the large SUV. He finally got the phone and put it to his ear, saying quickly, "Boss, I think someone's trying to kill me!" He looked back at the SUV just in time to watch it slam into the rear of his car. Tony dropped the phone again and tried to turn to the right. However, his car wouldn't move away from the SUV slamming into the back of him and the SUV began to pull back. Tony turned his steering wheel to the left quickly just as the SUV slammed into him once again.

Tony lost control of the wheel and watched as the front of his car slammed into a tree. He felt his head slam into the steering wheel and blood began to trickle down his face, the horn screaming. He remembered thinking about why the airbag didn't work, why he hadn't slammed his face into the airbag rather than the steering wheel. He could hear someone yelling his name, asking him what was going on.

Just as Tony was about to lose all consciousness, he heard his car door open and the sounds of someone speaking. His voice sounded familiar, like he was someone that he had met before. Closing his eyes slowly, he felt someone grab his shoulders and begin to remove him from the car.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

MUST READ TO UNDERSTAND NEXT CHAPTER! A warning for the next chapter: It will open up with Tony being in a memory, so the entire chapter is a memory. Just wanted to let you guys know incase you got confused. ^_^ Sorry I didn't put the memory in this chapter. :P And I'm a bit too lazy to go back and edit the other chapter, but I will get around to it, no worries. I had this really good idea for this chapter so here it is. And again, I apologize for the long wait guys. :( I lost internet at my dads and my mom doesn't have internet, so I have to wait until I go somewhere with internet and that often takes a while, believe it or not. T_T

Abby was asleep at her computer, the keyboard smashing against her cheek and a cup of Caf-Pow in her right hand still. She had been busy trying to locate information on Eli David and a bit of information on the new director; Ryan Donnivan. However, she was unsuccessful in both fields and after a while, the caffeine high began to slowly turn itself into a crash. Thus, leaving a sleeping Abby.

"Abby!" Bellowed a very agitated and very worried Leroy Jethro Gibbs. Rushing into the room, he grabbed the back of her chair and pulled it away from the desk, awaking Abby quickly, her head shooting up from the keyboard. "I'm up! I'm on it, Gibbs! I was not...I wasn't sleeping!" She said, looking at him and blinking, before asking, "What is it? Did you find Tony?"

Putting McGee's phone on Abby's desk, Gibbs looked her in the eyes and said seriously, "I just called him. I want you to trace it." Abby immediately began pounding the keys and staring at the screen intensly. "If he called you a few minutes ago, I should be able to find it." She continued to type, beginning to get somewhere. Gibbs didn't understand on the screen, but he knew that it was good news.

"Leroy!" Called a cheery voice, making Gibbs blink slightly as he turned around and met eyes with a dark haired man. His black bangs hung just above his blue eyes, swaying towards the left, the tips a bluish color, and the rest of his hair was decorated with blond and a few green highlights. He was wearing a black, leather jacket, white T-shirt, jeans, and a pair of black converse. Gibbs could see remnants of the tattoo on the man's left shoulder on the side of his neck. The man looked like someone apart of Abby's crowd.

"Ryan," Gibbs said suddenly, sighing and asking calmly, "Why the hell are you dressed like that?"

"Why not?"

"Not very professional if you ask me."

"Wasn't asking you."

Ryan grinned widely and laughed slightly as he looked at Gibbs' light blue eyes with amusement. "Still the same, Leroy." Gibbs nodded as he replied, "You too." He turned back to Abby and watched as she slammed her finger on the enter key and smiled, standing up with raised arms. "YES!" She shouted, turning and hugging Gibbs tightly. Her face was lit up with instant happiness as she exlaimed, "Gibbs, I found him! I found him and Eli!" Ryan nodded as he listened to the two talk, smiling.

"Address, Abby." Gibbs said calmly as he grabbed a sticky note and pen off of her desk. Abby began giving him the address that Tony was at and the address where Eli was at. In a matter of seconds, Gibbs was rushing past Ryan and into the elevator. Seeing Ziva, he said quickly, "Got a lead." The doors closed and Ryan was left staring at two, steel doors. He looked back at Abby and smiled brightly, walking over to her and extending his right hand. "You must be Ms. Abby Sciuto. Leroy mentioned you a few times." Abby stared at Ryan with confused, wide eyes as she shook his head and replied, "Nice to meet you uh...Who are you again?"

Smiling, the new member of the team answered, "My name is Ryan Donnivan and I will be taking the place of Director Jennifer Shepard." Abby stared at Ryan, hearing Jenny's name and remembering what happened. Her funeral would be taking place soon...But would they be there for it?

Finally, Abby sighed and asked, "So that means...You're Director Donnivan now, right?" Ryan nodded. "Yeah, pretty much. I hope to get along well with all of you as well." Looking at the computer screen, he saw a picture of Eli David on the screen and then a picture of Tony beneath it. He furrowed his brow as he moved closer and asked, "This Anthony?"

"Yeah...Gibbs just got a call from him, but he didn't look too happy. Something must've happened." She bit her lower lip as she stared at Tony's picture and sighed heavily. "If something happened to Tony again and he ends up...Well, if he ends up not coming to work again for it...I don't know what'd I do." Ryan glanced at Abby before looking back at the screen and pointing at Tony's picture. "Where's he from?" Looking slightly confused, Abby looked at Ryan and replied, "Long Island, why?"

Ryan grabbed his cellphone from his right pocket, a touch screen phone, and began going through his pictures. Finally, he stopped and held it up to the screen, then looked at Abby. "Then we have a serious problem." Abby stared at the picture and her eyes widened slightly as her eyes flickered from the phone to the screen. "But...If that's Eli David, then who's that standing with him and talking to him? And how did you get that picture?" She looked back at Ryan and felt sick to her stomach when he looked back at her. "I was undercover for a while, keeping an eye on Eli while he was in this country. Unfortunately, he fell off our radar a week ago." He zoomed in on the picture on the other man and looked at Abby, saying calmly, "And this guy...This is Antonio DiNozzo; Anthony's biological father."

-Break-

Gibbs had his foot on the gas so hard that Ziva was afraid it would smash through the floor. He looked on either sides of the road angrily, searching desperately for Tony's car. "How much farther, Ziva?" He snapped suddenly, making Ziva jump. "Another mile, Gibbs." She stared out her window as she cleared her throat and added, "Another ten for the airport and only an hour left until the plane takes off." Gibbs shook his head in frusturation as he heard his phone ringing. He reached for it just as he slammed on his brakes, getting out of the car before it came to a complete stop. Answering the phone, Gibbs pulled out hsi gun and walked up to the car slowly. "Yeah, Gibbs."

Ziva followed quickly behind, barely making out the conversation that Gibbs was having with the person on the phone. She was more concerned about Tony's car and its smashed up appearance. She prayed that Tony had made it out alive and that he was alright, but with her father involved, she couldn't be too sure.

Finally, she heard Gibbs sigh heavily. He had just opened the front door and holstered his gun, staring at the blood on the steering wheel. Rubbing his head, he replied to the talker, "Ryan, what is it you're trying to say exactly?" He waited for a few minutes before his eyes widened slightly and he glanced at Ziva, who was already on the verge of throwing up.

"Leroy, Gregory was Anthony's step-father, the man who he thought was his biological father. His actual father's name is Antonio and he's in cahoots with Eli."

Hanging up, Gibbs began running back to his car. Ziva followed as she yelled, "Gibbs! Gibbs, what is it?" They climbed into the car and without buckling or warning Ziva, he slammed on the gas. "Tony's step-father was the one who died! His real jackass of a father is in cahoots with YOUR father!" Ziva looked at Gibbs with eyes the size of saucers. "Well then who was the one who beat him when he was a child?" Gibbs didn't reply at first, thinking that exact question himself. "Probably his real father." He growled, swerving down a dirt road. Ziva buckled up quickly and hung onto the side of the car, rubbing her forehead with the other. She felt her eyes watering slightly as she whispered softly, "Tony...Please be strong."

-Break-

Tony's eyes flickered open, hearing two men laughing. He could smell wine, red wine to be exact, and his eyes were still slightly heavy and blurry. His head was pounding painfully and as his eyes became more and more focused, he could make out the body of Eli David.

Eli looked at Tony and smiled, holding a glass of red wine in his right hand and taking a sip. "Anthony, so glad you could join us. The drugs shouldn't have wore off that quickly, so I take it you're not all there." Sighing slightly, Tony tried to move. However, when he couldn't, he looked down at himself. Eli had apparently bound his wrists and ankles with rope and then put duct tape across his mouth. He growled in slight anger as his eyes drifted over to the man sitting across from Eli. Tony felt sick to his stomach when he saw a very, very familiar face staring at Tony with a glass of red wine in his left hand. He stared at him for a few moments, making eye contact with the man's dark green eyes.

"Anthony," the man finally said, chuckling. "It's about time this moment came. Eli here wanted you away from his daughter and kidnapped me, hoping I would tell him where my son was. It was during this time that we realized we both wanted the same thing," Tony's eyes looked back at the floor and began closing as his father finished his sentence.

"We both wanted you dead."

Smiling at this, Tony actually laughed slightly and finally closed his eyes, relaxing calmly. He couldn't believe this moment had come, the moment where his father had teamed up with his worst enemy and finally planned on killing him.

His eyes shut and he calmly prepared himself for the end, for the minute that he would open his eyes and see his asshole of a father getting ready to kill him.  



	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

NOTE! PLEASE READ THIS! I wanted to remind you all that this is a fanfiction: A fiction story made by a fan: so I take Tony's childhood and the way he met Gibbs a LOT differently than said in the TV show. I really like the way this'll turn out so my apologies to those who don't, but this is what I think/hoped/wished REALLY happened between Gibbs and Tony.

"Daddy, I'm cold." The young, brunette boy shivered as he sat in the whine cellar of the large mansion. He glanced at all of the large, frightening shadows that danced around the room because of the single bulb hanging in the room. His green eyes glanced up at the rickety old door that lead to the kitchen of the mansion. He could hear music playing and people moving upstairs, but he didn't hear his father's voice.

Sighing, the young boy pulled his knees up to his chest. He was sitting on the bottom step of the stairs that lead to the wine cellar, while staring at the wall and wondering when his father would come back for him. This was supposed to be a party for the young boy's twelth birthday, not for his father. His father had locked him in here right after he had had a slice of cake and opened his presents.

Didn't anyone notice that he was gone?

Suddenly, there was a knock on the cellar door. Flinching, the young boy looked up and was rewarded with the opening of the door. He stared at their butler, James McCarthy. James stared back at the young boy before sighing and whispering, "If you hurry to your room, Anthony, I will bring you up some food." Anthony "Tony" DiNozzo nodded as he rushed from the dark cellar and through the living room, smelling alcohol in the air. His face twisted in disgust as he rushed up the red carpeted stairs leading to the second floor. Running down the hallway, he heard his father's laugh echo throughout the house. He was drunk and would surely come and "talk" to Tony later about escaping.

Scurrying into his room, Tony sat down on his bed and sighed heavily, rubbing his face. He looked at his hands and then at his closed door. His room was small compared to his father's room. His mother had always told him that it was because they couldn't afford a bigger room for him, but Tony knew that was a lie. He had known that since he was four.

"Anthony?" Came a voice. Tony looked up at his door and caleld softly, "Yeah, I'm here, James." He stood up and looked at himself in a nearby mirror, playing with his hair for a few minutes before turning and looking at James. James was holding a small, silver tray in his hands with a sandwich, a bag of chips, and a glass with soda in it. Closing the door behind him, he set the tray on Tony's dressar and looked at him. "I will have to lock the door after I leave, sir." Tony nodded as he rubbed his arms and chewed on his lower lip. He took a deep breath before saying with a small smile, "Thank you, James." James nodded as he repleid, "I won't tell Gregory, Tony."

"Hey wait, I have a question! Have you heard anything about uhm...About my father yet?" He glanced at the door and then back at James. James sighed and said a bit coldly, "Anthony, your father is not coming back for you. He left you when you were five, you know that, and made sure that Gregory would be able to take his place." With that, he left the room and locked it from the outside. Tony sighed heavily as he sat back down on his bed and looked at the food on his dressar. Smiling, he made his way over to the dressar and took the tray, putting it in his lap. After taking a bite of the sandwich, he looked back at the mirror and his eyes found their way to his black and blue left eye.

-Later that night-

Tony sighed heavily as he heard the heavy footsteps of his father wobbling down the hallway. He stood up quickly, putting the silver tray into a nearby drawer of his dressar and hearing his father beginning to unlock and open the door. He bit on his lower lip as he sat back down and heard the door open, slamming against the wall. Gregory wobbled into the room, drunk and unstable, glaring at Tony's frightened eyes. The young boy was trying to fight back the trembling that was beginning to take over his body.

Greg laughed slightly as he made his way over to Tony and grabbed his right wrist tightly. He pulled it behind Tony's back harshly, pulling Tony onto is back on his bed. He winced at the pain filling his wrist as he stared at his father, the smell of alcohol filling his nose. Greg laughed softly as he hissed, "You ate, didn't ya? Ya got out of that damn...Damn cellar. You little...Little br...Brat!" Tony was trembling by now, whimpering slightly in pain. His father made a strange face before slamming his fist into Tony's left cheek. The young boy winced in pain and held back tears as his father growled, "Stop being such a damn...Cr-Crybaby!" He stared at his father and swallowed, before feeling another fist meet his cheek. He felt tears roll down his cheeks as Greg tightened his grip on his wrist.

"Stop! CRYING!" The man screamed, pulling on Tony's wrist more. Tony bit his lower lip harshly, holding back a pained whimper. He watched as his father raised his fist before he kneed him in the stomach and watched him topple over. Tony stood up quickly, running to the door. Tears began running down his face quickly, making it harder to breath. In the next minute, he felt someone grab his arm and toss him on the ground. He hit the ground so hard that it took his breath away, blood trickling down his face from his nose.

Rolling onto his back, he felt his father sit on top of him. Greg glared at his son, his nine-year-old little boy, before putting his right hand on top of his mouth and pressing down so hard that Tony felt like his jaw was going to break. The older, larger man grabbed Tony's wrist again and pinned it behind his back so hard that it began to burn. He pressed down harder on Tony's mouth as he growled angrily, "You ever try to run off again, you little snot, and I'll make sure that you're bleeding from more than your nose." Greg finally stood up and left Tony there, trembling and staring at the ceiling.

The young boy sat up finally and made his way into the bathroom. Sitting down on the toilet, he sniffed up blood and grabbed a few pieces of toilet paper, trying to clean up his nose.

Standing, he looked in the mirror at his bloody nose and bruised left face. He watched as tears rolled down his cheeks and he swallowed, looking down and away from the ugly face looking back at him.

-Ten years later-

Tony growled angrily as he shifted his black bag over his right shoulder. He had graduated a year ago, but had not had time to apply for a college since his father had worked him until he was ready to drop. His father had also continued to beat him senseless, only with harsher methods.

Today, however, was the day he was finally going to get away from his father. The day that he was going to drive and keep driving, no matter what happens. As he made his way out of his small room, he walked down the stairs and past his father, sitting in the living room.

"Where ya off to?" Greg asked, taking a sip of his beer. Tony stopped and looked at Greg, licking the fresh cut on the right side of his bottom lip. "I told you already, but you sat on your fatass and laughed." He opened the door and walked over to his blue pick-up, the only truck in the yard. His car was the only one "allowed to get rust and dirty", as his father had said.

When Tony got into the driver's seat, he looked up at his father, standing in the doorway. Looking at his steering wheel, he adjusted his rearview mirror before beginning to drive away from hs house. He looked at the house and watched as his father laughed before walking inside and closing the door. Sighing in annoyance and anger, Tony glared at the road before him and began driving with nowhere in mind.

-Eleven hours later-

Tony sighed as he walked down the snowy streets. He sniffed slightly as he rubbed his face and ran a hand through his hair. He had stopped at five houses already for help. Two weren't home, the other three simply didn't want to help.

Bunch of jerks.

Sighing in annoyance this time, he walked towards a house and prepared to be turned down again. Putting a hand on his lip, feeling the cut, he wondered if this house would be any different. Maybe people turned him down because of his bruised face and cut lip. He wasn't really sure, nor did he really care.

Finally, Tony came to the front door of the house and raised his right hand, knocking on the door. He waited for a bit, hearing someone moving inside. Sniffing again, he wiped his nose and heard the door open. Blinking, Tony looked at the older man in the doorway and thought about something to say. The man raised an eyebrow and growled slightly, "Ya here to just stare at me or somethin'?"

Tony shook his head and replied softly, "No, uh...Actually, I wanted to know if I could use your phone or," he looked at the man's car and then at the older man. "Your car maybe." The older man smiled at this and said calmly, "How's about you use my couch for a bit."

-Break-

"Anyway, thanks for letting me into your house, Gibbs." Tony said, taking the mug from Gibbs' hands as the older man sat next to him. He took a drink of the warm coffee and smiled at Gibbs, the older man staring at his eye. Tony licked his lip again and looked away from Gibbs, trying to get him to stop looking at his swollen eye. "Uh...Yeah, if I could just use your phone really quick, I could be out of here and you could have your house back, Gibbs."

"How the hell did you drive with that eye?" Gibbs asked, staring at Tony. Tony looked up at Gibbs' face before thinking this over and replying, "I just...Kinda drove."

"Who did that to ya?"

"Well, I uh...I'd rather not talk about it."

"Then you'll stay here til you can."

Tony raised an eyebrow at Gibbs as he looked at the older man, wondering why he even cared. He had just met him and all Tony really needed to do was use a phone and keep driving. "Look I...I can't stay here with you, Gibbs. I have to get going." Gibbs nodded as he stood up and replied, "Guest bedrooms down the hall, third door on the left." He then walked into the kitchen, leaving a very confused and very bothered Tony.

Standing, the nineteen-year-old made his way into the kitchenand stared at Gibbs. He tried not to look like he was glaring before he asked calmly, "Why are you doing this?" Gibbs looked back at Tony before turning back to the vegetables he was cutting. "You looked like you need some help."

Tony nodded before sitting down at the kitchen table and staring at Gibbs. He swallowed before smiling and saying, "Anyway, I hope you don't mind my company." Gibbs didn't respond but for some reason, Tony knew that he didn't mind that much.

-A week later-

Tony sighed as he sat on Gibbs' couch, staring at the television. He had already spilled the beans about everything to Gibbs, about everything that he needed to say about his father. Now...Now he didn't know what he felt. Empty? Alone? Scared?

When Gibbs walked into the room, Tony glanced at him and then at the television. He didn't speak until Gibbs asked, "You deserve it?"

"Sure."

Slap.

Tony blinked when Gibbs' hand made contact with the back of his head. He looked at Gibbs and raised an eyebrow. "Uh...Why'd...Why'd ya do that?" Gibbs shrugged and replied, "Reflex." He stared at the younger man's eyes before watching Tony smile. "Thanks. I think I deserved that." Gibbs nodded and leaned against the couch, saying calmly, "Yeah...yeah I think ya did." He stood up and walked into the kitchen before Tony nodded and closed his eyes. Touching his eye softly, he murmured, "Didn't deserve this...No...I didn't deserve this...That's what he was trying to say."  



	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

When Tony awoke, he could hear people talking. One of them he recognized immediately as his father and sighed heavily, not wanting to have anything to do with the man. He heard Ziva's father's voice and his eyes fluttered open slowly. Grimacing in annoyance, he stared at the two, sitting at a table in front of Tony. Blood was running down Tony's lip, making him wonder what they had done to him while he was asleep. He heard Antonio, his father, snarl, "He's awake." Eli looked over at Tony and Tony swallowd, breathing heavily as he tried to stay awake, his eyelids were heavy. He grimaced angrily when Antonio walked over to him and grabbed his hair, yanking on it. Antonio laughed as he growled, "You're a sorry bastard of a son...Glad I can do this to you."

Tony grinned as he replied with a growl, "Do your worst, asshole." Antonio glared at him with his cold eyes before looking over at Eli, watching as Eli grabbed knife. He walked towards Tony slowly and murmured, "We are miles and miles away from Jethro, Anthony." He tapped the knife against Tony's neck, grinning like mad. "You will not be able to cry for him, to yell for him or get out of here with him." Eli dragged the blade of the knife across Tony's cheek, murmuring, "And after this, there will not be anything for Jethro to find in the first place." Tony nodded as he grinned, feeling the blood trickle down his face and he growled angrily, "I don't care where the hell Gibbs is. Just do. Your. Worst." Eli grimaced, looking like he was thinking for a minute, before stabbing the knife into Tony's left shoulder, making the younger male cry out in pain. "Fine. I shall do my worst and I shall make sure that this cocky attitude is buried with you."

~Break~

"Where the hell is my agent?" Gibbs shouted, looking at Abby. Abby sighed as she replied quickly and with worry, "I don't know, Gibbs! It's giving me five different points!" Gibbs was about ready to brek something and having a worried, pacing Ziva behind him simply made everything worse. He walked up to the big screen and stared at it before pointing to a point and asking, "Where's this?" Abby punched in a few numbers and letters before she felt her breath hitch. She looked up at Gibbs and said with eyes the size of saucers, "That's...Uhm, that's Tony's father's house, Gibbs." Ziva felt her eyes widen as she looked at Gibbs and then at Abby. Gibbs felt anger rise up in his body before storming out of the room with Ziva on his heels. She looked at him and asked, "Do you think Tony is okay, Gibbs?" Gibbs ran up the stairs as he replied with full confidence, "Course he is."

In the next half an hour, everything happened extremely fast. A SWAT tearm had the building surrounded with guns loaded and ready to be fired. Police and a few ambulances stood off to the side as Gibbs, Ziva, and Ryan began putting on their bullet proof vests. Gibbs looked at the SWAT team and pointed to the house, watching the leader nod and then the team split up. They fanned out the area, standing guard at all of the doors. Gibbs looked at Ryan and Ziva and Ryan smiled, walking over to the front door. He heard something inside the house shatter and he grinned, looking at Gibbs. Gibbs rushed up to the door, kicking it in and running in, the SWAT team following. He aimed his gun at everything that moved, made a sound, and anything that seemed like an opening. He heard a door slam and he grimaced angrily, running up the stairs. Ryan followed and looked down the hallway, before running towards a door and kicking it in. He looked around the room before walking over to the closet. Opening it, he heard a loud gun shot.

Gibbs flinched at the gun sound and rushed into the room, looking at a dead man in front of Ryan. He glared at him and Ryan looked over at Gibbs, smiling as he reassured him, "Scared em to death! I thought he was gonna blast my brains out!" Gibbs rolled his eyes and heard a loud THUD from below them. He watched Ryan run from the room and suddenly, Gibbs realized something that they had missed. He ran down the stairs and towards the kitchen, knowing exactly where the two bastards hid Tony DiNozzo; his agent and his family.

~Break~

Tony smiled as he sat on the cold, damp floor, his wrists and ankles bound tightly by a plastic zipper. He was seeint spots and occassionally, he saw Bryce glaring at him. He saw Bryce with a gun and he saw Jenny dead in front of him. He laughed as he sat there, hearing the people above him running around. He knew where his father went; back to Israel with Eli David where Eli would then blast his brains out. No, they hadn't killed him as promised, but Eli had ceratinly gotten him to back off of Ziva. After this, Tony thought about calling it off and just trying all over again. He thought about going home and staying home. He thought about why Eli had let him live...When he could've killed him.

Someday the rains will fall,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall,

Someday the rains will fall,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall,

When I first come down here,

From the country,

Came to a fork in the road.

One way went, nowhere

And the other,

It carried a heavy load,

His heart beat was slowing rapidly as blood began to dry on his face. Tony grinned as he heard heavy footsteps overhead and knew exactly who it was; Gibbs. His eyelids fell over his eyes and he felt his body slowly beginning to grow limp. He opened his eyes again and took heavy breaths, almost appearing as though he were sleeping, but with his eyes open. He heard the sound of snapping metal before a bright light filled the once dark room. Gibbs came thudding down the stairs and Tony whimpered softly, seeing Bryce take Gibbs' place. He flinched, listening as Bryce told him to calm down. Bryce grinned as he reached for Tony and Tony kicked him in the legs several time, shouting threats to him as he did so. He felt his eyes dance across the room as he tried to focus but this was taking way too much energy out of him. He was panting heavily now and felt a burst of pain erupt from his heart, then throughout his body.

Tony grimaced and felt a hand on his shoulder, making him wince slightly. Before he knew what was going on, Kate, Bryce, his father, his step-father, and Eli all stood before him with Gibbs crouching down in front of him. He was saying something calmly, trying to keep Tony steady as Tony began drifting. He looked at Gibbs' light blue eyes before smiling gently. Gibbs whispered softly, "DiNozzo, you're safe. I'm here now, alright? I'm proud of ya, so keep fighting." Tony nodded and finally, he felt his eyes close and he didn't feel a single thing anymore, didn't hear anything, and didn't see anything. Tony knew that the minute his eyes closed, they would never open again.

Someday the rains will fall,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall.

Someday the rains will fall,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall.

Your eyes and mind are always looking for trouble,

Try to take,

The shortcut home.

And you end up back where you started again.

~A few weeks later...~

Someday the rains will fall,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall.

Someday the rains will fall,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall

You hurry down the alley with another man's woman,

You don't care nothing about the ring on her hand.

You think surely you can get away,

And sometimes maybe you can.

Someday the rains will,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall,

Someday the rains will fall,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall.

We're all just a bunch of lies and liars,

Never seen a hypocrite before.

Then we love to judge each other,

But hypocrites we are forever more

Someday the rains will,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall,

Someday the rains will fall,

When you expect it least,

Someday the rains fall...

Gibbs stood in the rain quietly, his hands folded in front of him as he listened to a man speak. He stared at the people around him, dressed in black and all with saddened expressions. Abby stood off to the right, the rain messing up her black make-up and McGee with an arm wrapped around her shoulders. He stared at the coffin placed in front of them and he began wondering just how much longer he could stand here. He coughed slightly, earning a pat on the back from Ryan as he smiled over at him. He then looked over at the coffin as well and then over at Gibbs, frowning sadly. He put a hand on his arm and Gibbs didn't divert his eyes from the coffin. He merely stood there, staring at it and wondering if things could've better. If things would've ended another way, would he have changed anything? Would he have increased the relationship between the two of them?

The rain seemed to be relentless as everyone began leaving except for the NCIS members. They all continued to stare, still amazed that this had happened to someone else they loved dearly. Still amazed at how fast it had happened.

~Later~

Gibbs sighed heavily as he climbed out of the car and stared at the building before him. He glanced over at the passenger in his car and began walking towards the building. He heard the person murmur something under his breath about not having anything to do here and he smiled. When they got up to the front doors, Gibbs turned to the man and looked him in the eyes.

Anthony "Tony" DiNozzo stared back with his tired, sad eyes. He smiled gently and as Gibbs hugged him, he sighed in relief and murmured, "Rehab suks..." Gibbs nodded as he whispered softly, "Yeah well...It's only for a bit, DiNozzo." Tony sighed as he pulled away and said, "Six months, Boss, is NOT only a bit." The older man nodded and Tony said, "Don't replace me, okay?" Gibbs laughed softly as he replied, "Yeah, I'll remember that, Tony." He stared at the man before saying with a smile, "Ryan's takin' your place and if you come back still screwed up, DiNozzo...I'm gonna pound you until you're fixed." Tony nodded as he smiled sadly and replied,"Yeah...I'd pound myself, Boss." He hugged Gibbs one more time before smiling and saying, "Call you when I can, Gibbs." Gibbs nodded and he smiled, watching as Tony walked into the building and was welcomed by a nurse. He sighed heavily, looking back at his car and walking towards it.

(Flashback: 2 Memories) "DiNozzo, get your damn legs off my table!" Tony looked up at Gibbs innocently before dropping his feet and saying, "But you don't use it!" Gibbs rolled his eyes as he glared at a very young, very strange nineteen-year-old Tony DiNozzo. "When the hell do you go to college?" Tony grinned as he replied, "Ready to get rid of me, Gibbs?" Gibbs walked into the kitchen and growled, "Ready to get you a job, DiNozzo." The young boy smiled as he nodded and yawned, staring at the blank television.

"This is Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. He is your newest special agent, Jethro. Teach him well." The Director stood in front of Gibbs, before smiling and walking off. Tony shifted his backpack onto his right shoulder and smiled at Gibbs, saying, "Hey, Boss. Where's my desk?" He looked at the one closes to Gibbs and pointed at it, "Can I have that one?" "No," Gibbs replied, pointing at the one diagonal from his desk. "THAT'S your desk, DiNozzo. That way I can keep an eye on you." Tony grimaced as he walked over to the desk and tossed his bag on the floor. He sat down at the desk and began going through his drawers, putting things in them. He smiled and heard Gibbs walk by, saying, "Good job, Tony." He walked off and Tony smiled, watching him leave and then looking at his desk, turning on his computer. "Couldn't have done it without ya, Gibbs..." (End)

Tony smiled as he looked around his new room, setting his bag on the floor. He went through his bag before pulling out his cellphone and sighing heavily, flipping it open. He opened and closed it a few times before looking out his window at Gibbs' car pulling off. He sat down on the bed and played with the phone for a bit before he heard it ring. Blinking, he answered it and said cluelessly, "Hello?"

"You'll be fine, Tony."

Tony smiled at the voice on the other end and he nodded, feeling his eyes water slightly. He rubbed his forehead as he replied, "I know, Boss." There was a slight pause before Gibbs said softly, "My couch is gonna get lonely." Tony chuckled to himself as he said with a grin, "Your TV will too."

"Yep...See you when you get home, DiNozzo."

Tony nodded and as he hung up, he stared out the window and smiled, knowing that all would be okay. He knew that this would be the day that marked the start of a new life and the start of something so much better. If he kept hanging on to that little bit of information, he knew he'd be okay. And after the phone call with Gibbs and saying his good-byes, Tony knew that no matter what, he always had a family and friends to return home to and that he would make it out of rehab healed.


End file.
